Aaron Judge joins Yankees’ three greatest sluggers after his moonshot

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Aaron Judge reached a significant milestone during Friday’s 8-5 loss to the Blue Jays, hitting his 40th home run of the season in his first at-bat. This feat places him among an elite group of Yankees sluggers, joining Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Mickey Mantle as the only players in franchise history to hit 40 or more home runs in at least three different seasons.

The captain’s home run was particularly notable, traveling a Statcast-projected 477 feet into the left-field bleachers off Toronto right-hander Kevin Gausman. This was the third-longest home run of Aaron Judge’s career, surpassed only by a 496-foot shot on September 30, 2017, against Toronto, and a 495-foot blast on June 11, 2017, versus Baltimore.

Despite the personal achievement, Aaron Judge expressed disappointment that it did not contribute to a team victory. He noted that teammate Juan Soto had been strategically getting on base to help Judge reach his 100th RBI, accomplished with this home run.

“If it came with a win tonight, that would be pretty sweet,” the Yankees slugger said. “We were kind of sitting on 39 [homers] and 99 [RBIs] for a while. Juan [Soto] told me in Philly, ‘Hey, I’m going to keep getting on base because I want to be that 100th RBI. So he was able to do that tonight.”

Aaron Judge’s overall performance for the night was strong, going 2-for-4 with a walk. His season statistics are impressive, leading the Majors in several categories, including home runs, RBIs (101), on-base percentage (.449), slugging percentage (.695), OPS (1.144), extra-base hits (66), and total bases (271).

Blue Jays manager John Schneider remarked on his outstanding performance, calling his numbers “ridiculous” and “a joke.”

“He’s ridiculous,” Schneider remarked. “His numbers, you look up, it’s a joke.”

The home run, which left Aaron Judge’s bat at 117.5 mph, was not only the longest by a Yankee this year but also the second-longest in the Majors this season, just behind Jorge Soler‘s 478-foot shot at Coors Field on July 21.

Aaron Judge’s homer spree accumulates records

During his 2022 AL MVP season, Aaron Judge shattered the American League single-season home run record with 62, surpassing Roger Maris. He had previously hit 52 home runs in 2017, earning unanimous AL Rookie of the Year honors and finishing second in MVP voting.

Aaron Judge’s recent achievement places him among baseball’s elite. Babe Ruth achieved the feat 11 times, Lou Gehrig five times, and Mickey Mantle four times. Notably, he and Gehrig are the only players in this distinguished group to record three such seasons within their first nine years in the Majors.

Friday’s home run was the slugger’s sixth against Kevin Gausman, the most he has hit off any pitcher, and the most Gausman has allowed to any batter. Aaron Judge’s career stats against Gausman are remarkable, with a .297 batting average and a .757 slugging percentage.

Gausman acknowledged the challenge of pitching to Aaron Judge, noting the inevitability of such pitches being hit far.

The Yankees slugger’s 37 career home runs against the Blue Jays set a Yankees franchise record, second only to his 42 homers against the Orioles among all opponents.

Aaron Judge’s moonshot also places Judge alongside other notable players outside the Yankees organization, such as David Ortiz, Jeff Bagwell, Carl Yastrzemski, and Mike Trout, who have achieved similar feats.

The superstar slugger’s two-run homer in the first inning briefly cut the Blue Jays’ lead to 3-2, but Toronto ultimately secured an 8-5 victory, bolstered by a four-run third inning. Aaron Judge finished the night 2-for-4, including a 110-mph single off Kevin Gausman in the fifth inning, along with two RBIs, a walk, and two strikeouts.

Aaron Judge hit his 40th home run in his 109th game of the season, putting him on pace to hit approximately 59.4 home runs in 2024. This projection is just shy of his American League record of 62 home runs set two seasons ago, which earned him his first MVP award. If Aaron Judge maintains his current form, his 1.144 OPS would be the highest by an MLB hitter in a single season (minimum 100 games played) since Barry Bonds in 2004.

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