EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsThe 2026 New York Yankees were never in real danger of failing to reach the postseason.They will finish the regular season with the second-best record in the American League. They've scored the second-most runs in the league, hit the most homers and recorded the best ERA by more than a half run. Playing at home, New York will be favored in the wild-card series against the Boston Red Sox.And yet the Yankees enter Sunday's regular-season finale with an inordinate number of roster questions swirling. While addressing the constant inquiries, manager Aaron Boone has said "we'll see" so often that it has become a running joke on YES Network game broadcasts.While he waits to see, Boone has offered clues about the team's composition for the wild-card series, though a few decisions will come down to the final hour as rosters must be submitted next Tuesday morning."It feels more so this year than probably any year where we do have a lot of questions to answer," Boone said Friday. "Like a lot of years, when you're going into the postseason, it feels like you're kind of arguing a lot of times over that 25th or 26th spot between a couple of different guys. ... It does seem like there's more to work through this year."Aaron Judge's status has garnered most of the attention, but he is just one (massive) piece to the puzzle Yankees officials will put together going into Game 1.Here are five questions they'll need to answer.So is Aaron Judge playing or not?Judge missed 84 games this season with a rib stress fracture and was still getting his timing back when he suffered a calf strain Sept. 16. Even the mildest calf strains can sideline players for multiple weeks, but Judge's outlook was left a mystery.Judge told reporters in Arizona last weekend that he was dealing with a soleus muscle strain in his calf. No further details about the injury were divulged by Judge, Boone or the team, until Boone called it "moderate grade" strain on Tuesday.Boone also said Tuesday that the team doesn't expect Judge to be ready for the wild-card series and is planning as if he won't be available, though the manager added he is not ruling out the possibility.That irked Judge. A day later, after telling ESPN he still intended to be available for the start of the postseason, Judge suggested he wasn't happy with Boone's description of his situation."Everybody's moderate is a little different," Judge said. "Your moderate is a little different than my moderate, so on and so on. So, I don't know why he used those words. But, like I said, I'm trying to get back as soon as I can."Still, Judge emphasized that Boone is "my guy" and he supports him."I know he makes the right decisions," Judge said.Whether the team will decide to carry Judge on the roster for the wild-card series is unknown. Judge received a PPP (platelet-poor plasma) injection Monday to spur healing. He has resumed physical activity but, as of Friday, hadn't taken a swing since sustaining the strain. Acknowledging the Yankees' glut at designated hitter, Judge said he wants to return to play right field and not as a DH.Playing the field so soon after the injury is risky, though the Yankees could put him on the roster as just a pinch-hitting option. That could require the team to have one fewer pitcher on the roster. Last year, the Yankees had 12 pitchers on their wild-card roster. Boone this week suggested they could take fewer this year."I see no scenario where we're going to have 13 pitchers, maybe not even 12," Boone said. "We'll see."What about Giancarlo Stanton(!) and Trent Grisham?Judge isn't the only position player who could be activated from the injured list for the wild-card series. Stanton (calf) and Grisham (hamstring) have both been working toward being available, though their circumstances are different.Grisham likely could have been activated during the final week of the regular season, but that would have required the Yankees to either designate a player for assignment or option a player to the minors. Optioning would have made that player ineligible for at least the wild-card series and perhaps the division series. The Yankees chose to maintain additional roster flexibility, banking on Grisham to be playoff-ready without game reps.Stanton, meanwhile, has not played in a game since straining his right calf in late April. He suffered two setbacks while on the verge of coming off the injured list, delaying any chance of a return till October. He -- like Grisham -- faced live pitching this week at the organization's Double-A affiliate on Wednesday and again at Yankee Stadium on Thursday. He also ran the bases this week for the first time since sustaining a "moderate grade" strain to his left calf last month."They're knocking on the door," Boone said. "Anything's possible. We'll see."Stanton's inclusion as the designated hitter would complicate the roster because the Yankees have had Ben Rice there most of the season, with Luis Garca Jr. and Paul Goldschmidt primarily splitting time at first base since Garca's acquisition at the trade deadline. If Stanton were to DH, Rice, a lesser defender, would likely start at first base, moving Garca and Goldschmidt to the bench. Garca, one of baseball's best hitters against right-handed pitching, has extensive experience at second base, but he hasn't played that position this season and was a poor defender there in recent years.The Yankees could also carry Stanton on the roster as a pinch hitter, making him a late-game weapon especially against left-handed pitchers.Who's on third? (And what about the rest of the infield?)With George Lombard Jr. cementing himself as the Yankees' everyday shortstop, Anthony Volpe has primarily played second base since he was promoted from Triple-A earlier this month when Jazz Chisholm Jr. landed on the IL. With Chisholm activated, Volpe's role is less certain. The Yankees could have him start at second base against left-handed starters and play Chisholm there against right-handers. A year ago, Chisholm did not start Game 1 of the wild-card series against Red Sox lefty ace Garrett Crochet.Volpe could also play third base. Although he had never played the position at the major league level until he started there Friday, he did start three games at third in Triple-A before his recent promotion.The Yankees have three other options at third base: Ryan McMahon, Amed Rosario and Jose Caballero. Each has his own strengths and weaknesses.The left-handed-hitting McMahon is historically an elite defender, though he has had a few uncharacteristic misplays in recent weeks, but he has been one of the worst hitters in the majors with a 76 wRC+ this season. Rosario, a right-handed hitter, historically mashes left-handed pitching, but his production has been significantly better against right-handers in 2026 (.829 OPS in 82 plate appearances against righties, .601 OPS in 158 plate appearances against lefties), and he's a poor defender. Caballero is a menace on the basepaths and a strong defender, but he's batting .221 with a .631 OPS since May 2.Caballero, who bats right-handed, started three straight games at third base (twice against right-handed starters) last week before getting starts in left field and center field. The Yankees could opt to use him as a utility man and pinch runner off the bench and roll with McMahon against right-handers and Volpe or Rosario against lefties.Boone didn't shut down the possibility of having Chisholm play third base -- he was the Yankees' starting third baseman during their run to the 2024 World Series -- but said he hasn't considered it. Ultimately, each decision could come down to whether the Yankees choose to optimize the lineup or their defensive alignment."You've got to catch the ball, especially in the playoffs," Boone said. "Defense is a premium. But you're trying to leverage as many good matchups and good at-bats as you possibly can. So spending the next couple of days trying to create a little bit of position flexibility, especially if we go with a high number of position players in the wild-card series so that we can be aggressive firing against a certain matchup."Who is their Game 1 starter?Cam Schlittler was the best pitcher in the AL this season. He finished the year with a 1.95 ERA -- the third-best mark in franchise history -- with 239 strikeouts in 33 starts. While Gerrit Cole, Max Fried and Carlos Rodon all spent time on the injured list, he was the rock in the rotation and did not show any signs of tiring as the innings accumulated.Starting Game 1 with that rsum would usually be a no-brainer. But the Yankees are considering having Schlittler start Game 2 on Wednesday with Fried or Cole starting Game 1.Schlittler made his last four starts on four days' rest. After throwing 70 pitches over three innings Thursday, he would also start Game 1 on regular rest. Schlittler's 193 innings this season surpassed his previous career high for a regular season by 40. The Yankees are weighing softening his workload a bit versus having their best pitcher make an immediate imprint on the series."Who wouldn't want to start the first game?" Schlittler said. "I feel like this whole pitching staff deserves it and we're all competitors. At the end of the day, whatever Boonie decides, that's what we're going to roll with."If Fried were to start Game 1, it would be on six days' rest, and Cole would pitch the opener on five days' rest. As Boone noted this week, whoever starts Game 2 of the wild-card series could still start Games 2 and 5 of the American League Division Series against the Tampa Bay Rays on regular rest. Those games would be on the road -- where Schlittler recorded a 1.16 ERA this season, compared with a 2.98 ERA at home."He's the guy we want with the ball," Boone said of Schlittler. "Whether it's Game 1 or Game 2. You try to play out the whole [postseason]. You want to win the whole thing and want to have him have the most opportunities he can."Fried made five starts after his second stint on the injured list with a bone bruise in his left elbow. He allowed four runs on six hits over 6 innings in his final regular-season outing. He posted his best performance in his previous outing, holding the Minnesota Twins to one run over seven innings.Cole, who made his return from Tommy John surgery in late May, threw a season-high 105 pitches in 5 innings against the Rays on Wednesday. He had given up seven home runs over two starts earlier this month before surrendering one each in his final two outings and finishing the season with a 3.61 ERA in 22 starts.How will they line up their bullpen?The Yankees did not acquire a reliever at the trade deadline. Instead, they traded three who could have appeared in their bullpen down the stretch and maybe even in October to the Washington Nationals in the deal for Garca. At the time, they believed their bullpen, one of the best in the majors, had more than enough depth.Team officials envisioned a postseason relief corps that included Fernando Cruz, who was having a career season; Ryan Weathers, who would've transitioned from the rotation to the bullpen; and Clarke Schmidt, who was nearing a return from Tommy John surgery. With David Bednar, Brent Headrick and Paul Blackburn, the bullpen, on paper, looked stout.But that bullpen plan will not come to fruition. Cruz won't return in time from elbow injuries to play a role in the wild-card series. Schmidt was recently shut down with biceps neuritis. Weathers' status is unclear as he works back from a forearm strain; the left-hander faced Grisham and Stanton in a live batting practice Friday and Boone said he is under consideration for the wild-card series. Headrick and Blackburn are healthy, but heavy workloads affected their performances down the stretch. Only Bednar has remained healthy and consistent.Only three starters are necessary for the wild-card series. With some combo of Schlittler, Cole and Fried starting, the team could elect to also include Rodn, who registered a 1.89 ERA in his final seven starts after coming off the injured list in mid-August, and Will Warren, who was the team's fifth starter all season, on the roster as relievers. Not only would they provide length should a starter exit early or a game go into extra innings, but they also would upgrade the bullpen.As Boone indicated above, the Yankees are considering going with 11 pitchers. If they choose that route, having both Rodn and Warren gives them the best depth.
