Podcaster points to alarming statistic to outline Aaron Judge's importance for New York Yankees, worries for team in his absence

On June 4, New York Yankees left fielder Aaron Judge broke his toe after smashing through an outfield gate at Dodger Stadium. Although the team's captain robbed Dodgers slugger JD Martinez of an extra-base hit, fans knew immediately that his absence in the lineup would hurt.

After setting an MLB single-season record for his 62 home runs last season, Judge picked up right where he left off. At the time of his injury, he was leading the AL in home runs, with 19 of them.

While everyone knows that missing the defending MVP from their lineup will hurt the Yankees, an MLB podcaster has shared some numbers that illustrate just how bad Aaron Judge's IL stint could be for his team.

"Hilarious that Yankees-Red Sox is still promoted as some important matchup when they’re running out the rosters we saw this weekend" - Talkin' Yanks

Appearing on the 'Talkin' Yanks' podcast, Jomboy Media commentator Jake Storiale highlighted how the Yankees have scored over five runs per game on average with Aaron Judge in the lineup.

However, in games in which Judge has not suited up, the Yanks are only mustering an average of 3.3 runs across the plate per game.

The team's woes have been exemplified since Aaron Judge's injury. This week, the team lost a rare series to the Chicago White Sox. Although the Yankees were able to salvage themselves from a series sweep, the loss to the Sox was a big wake-up call.

In June so far, New York Yankees hitters have only mustered a batting average of .181, placing them 28th out of 30 MLB teams in the category. Moreover, heavy hitters like Anthony Rizzo and Giancarlo Stanton have been virtually invisible; Rizzo is batting just 0.38 over his past seven.

"Anthony Rizzo is now hitless in his last 24 at-bats, the longest hitless drought of his career" - ESPN Stats & Info

The New York Yankees lost another series this weekend against the Boston Red Sox. Once one of the biggest rivalries in the sport, the response to the century-old feud was very muted, given the poor performances of both sides of late.

Aaron Judge was always going to be the Yankees' centerpiece

When the Yankees penned Aaron Judge to a nine-year contract worth $360 million, the team made him the highest-paid position player of all time. As such, they knew that they were, by definition, putting all their eggs in one basket.

While Judge's absence has, and will sting the team, nobody could say that the team could not have seen the situation coming.