Welcome to September, baseball fans.

The Yankees have less than four weeks to catch the Rays and win the American League East.

And while a bye certainly could be important in their attempt to get to their second World Series in three years — and win their first title since 2009 — it pales in comparison to the most vital part of this month: the potential return of Aaron Judge.

Judge made the trip to the West Coast, where the Yankees opened the final stretch of the season on Monday night with a 10-1 loss to the Angels in Anaheim behind a lackluster Elmer Rodríguez.