On Friday night at Fenway Park, New York Yankees star Aaron Judge delivered a monumental moment in the seventh inning against the Boston Red Sox, launching a 470-foot home run that stands as the longest of his career, according to Statcast.
This towering shot briefly lifted the Bronx Bombers to a 7-4 lead, capping off a crucial turn in a tightly contested series.
The blast gave the Yankees the lead, but the game ended in disappointment as the Boston Red Sox mounted a comeback to secure a 9-7 victory. This season, Judge has been a powerhouse for the Yankees, racking up 36 home runs with a .307 batting average, a .438 on-base percentage, and a 1.112 OPS. His impressive performance continues to drive the Yankees’ playoff ambitions.
Yankees’ struggles continue
Returning to Fenway, where their current slump began six weeks ago, the Yankees (60-45) faced yet another setback. The team had hoped Judge’s three-run homer, paired with Austin Wells’ solo shot, would break their recent losing streak. Instead, the Red Sox’s resilience, highlighted by Masataka Yoshida’s two-run single, handed the Yankees their third consecutive loss.
In the seventh inning, Yankees pitchers Luke Weaver and Clay Holmes struggled to maintain the lead. Ceddanne Rafaela’s two-run homer off Weaver cut the Yankees’ advantage to one. Holmes was brought in for a five-out save, but the Red Sox quickly capitalized. Pinch-hitter Wilyer Abreu doubled to tie the game, and Yoshida’s single up the middle put the Red Sox ahead.
Ninth inning collapse
The Yankees had a chance to respond in the ninth inning. Wells and Gleyber Torres hit back-to-back singles, but Kenley Jansen, the Red Sox closer, shut the door. DJ LeMahieu struck out, and Anthony Volpe grounded out, ending the Yankees’ hopes.
Since winning the opening game of their June series at Fenway, the Yankees have posted a dismal 10-23 record. Despite this, they remain only two games behind the Orioles for first place in the AL East. Meanwhile, the Red Sox have clawed back from a 14-game deficit to trail the Yankees by just 3 ½ games.
Aaron Judge’s blast, while spectacular, wasn’t enough to carry the Yankees through the game. Earlier, Anthony Volpe tied the game with a solo home run in the second inning, and Trent Grisham’s RBI double and Alex Verdugo‘s sacrifice fly helped keep the Yankees in contention. However, starting pitcher Nestor Cortes struggled, allowing four runs on nine hits and two walks over 4 ²/₃ innings.
Aaron Judge’s historic home run was a moment of brilliance in an otherwise disappointing night for the Yankees. As they continue to fight for a playoff spot, they will need more than individual heroics to overcome their recent struggles and turn their season around.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
Nester, Weaver & Holmes were all awful, that’s a given. But did ANYONE doubt we were going to lose when our All-Star Reliever (WTF?) Clay Holmes came in for a 5-out save: LOL! Like that was going to happen.
Even though the pitchers were the culprits in this hideous loss, Boone still managed to do something Tremendously Stupid.
EVERY long-time Yankee fan knows damn well that a 3-run lead in Fenway is the equivalent of a 1-run lead in any other park. So, You DO NOT take out a young Power Hitter in Rice & Replace him with LeMahieu.
And, sure enough, LeMahieu came up in the 9th with 2 men on & a chance to tie the game with One Swing, IF the guy swinging the bat was Rice, NOT geriatric DJ.
Obviously, there was no guarantee that Ben Rice, who was 0-4 in the game before being replaced, would come through, but there was a 100% Better Chance of Rice hitting the ball harder than DJ.
Besides the HRs by Judge, Volpe, & Wells, there was one other Bright Spot to me that Boonehead will surely Overlook: Cabrera was 2-4 starting at 3rd.
So, Cabrera is now hitting:
* .350 (7 for 20) with an OBP of .381 in his last 7 games, with 2 RBI & 4 Runs Scored
* .324 (11 for 34) with an OBP of .368 in his last 15 games, with 3 RBI & 8 Runs Scored
Unlike DJ, the more Cabrera plays full-time, the better he hits.
SO, WHY ISN’T CABRERA THE EVERYDAY THIRD BASEMAN?
Answer: Boone’s a moron, like Cashman. He insists on believing that one day DJ will miraculously start hitting .364 again. That was 2020, Boone, 4 YEARS AGO!
Get your head out of your butt, Boone. DJ isn’t even the .261 hitter he was in 2022. Stop acting like a petulant child & face REALITY, Boone! DJ is toast at this point. He’s a classy guy & he was a great hitter, but injuries have robbed him of his ability to impact the ball with any authority. Accept that & play Cabrera, you nitwit.
I don’t care who they bring in from the trading deadline, it’s not going to matter. Stroman said it best earlier this month that Boone is soft. when Stroman got on the players arses that game they responded. Boone is afraid to do that and instead there is zero accountability and the players know that. Needs to be something that’s gonna wake these players up. FIRE BOONE NOW!!
The 470′ HR was awesome. Used to dream about doing that, but how in a crucial at bat do you take 3 strikes down the middle without swinging at one of them. Let’s go Man, step up and be the Man who you are. Kick some ass and take real charge of the game as a Captain should do. I am in the crowd that knows you are in the top 3 players in either League, but some at bats you look like you are lost.
I’m 69 years old & I remember when about 98% of hitter would NEVER guess when they had 2 strikes on them.
Now, even great hitters, like Judge & Stanton, stand there & look at Strike 3 because they guessed wrong.
That’s Insane, and that’s one of the things about modern baseball that I DETEST because the batter is basically saying, “I’m not good enough to adjust to whatever he might throw, so I”ll just stand there, like a damn fool, and watch Strike 3 wave bye-bye to me.”
That’s an INDEFENSIBLE APPROACH for a player as athletic as Judge. You can at least TRY to foul off the damn pitch if it isn’t what you were hoping for.
As Paul O’Neill has said Many times, he never guessed; he just looked for the Fastball on every pitch & ADJUSTED to any other pitch. That makes a Hell of a lot more sense for a gifted athlete, like Judge, then standing there & just taking Strike 3.
Here’s an example of what O’Neill meant:
In Game 1 of World Series against the Mets, Paul O’Neill was facing a tough pitcher with an overpowering fastball that O’Neill couldn’t catch up to, so Paulie did this:
With 1 out in the 9th & the Yankees down by a run, O’Neill battled through a TEN-PITCH AT-BAT, fouling off Every Damn Pitch he couldn’t handle, until he drew a WALK that directly led to the Yankees Coming from Behind To Win Game 1 of the World Series. It was the Greatest AB I ever saw in which the hitter NEVER came close to getting a hit!
That’s how a Professional Hitter at least TRIES to deal with a tough pitch. He DOESN’T stand there, like 99% of the hitters today, and say: “Oh, well, strike 3. I guess I guessed wrong.”
Judge is Too Great an Athlete to take that approach with 2 Strikes on him.
If you want to guess with LESS Than 2 Strikes, fine, but don’t stand there & say, Oh, well, I guessed wrong.
With 2 Strikes on you, do like O’Neill did, look for the Fastball & adjust to anything else to hopefully at least foul it off.