MINNEAPOLIS — The Yankees captain spent most of Monday night looking like a hitter still searching for timing after three months on the injured list.
Aaron Judge grounded into a double play, struck out twice and carried a 3-for-20 line with 11 strikeouts since his return into his fourth plate appearance. The Yankees were trying to finish a comeback at Target Field, and their captain had yet to provide the kind of swing that normally changes a game in September for a club already pushing toward October.
The Yankees did not need Judge to start the eighth-inning rally. George Lombard Jr. doubled, Ryan McMahon reached, José Caballero tied the game and Ben Rice delivered a two-run single. Cody Bellinger followed with an infield hit. By the time the Yankees slugger stepped in against left-hander A.J. Minter, New York had turned a 2-1 deficit into a 4-2 lead and forced Minnesota to pitch to the most dangerous bat in its lineup.
Judge then supplied the moment the Yankees had waited for since his return. He turned on a 2-2 cutter and sent it into the left-field seats at 104.2 mph for a three-run homer. Statcast credited the drive at 415 feet with a 36-degree launch angle, while another game estimate listed it at 397 feet. It was Judge’s first home run since May 24 and pushed the Yankees ahead 7-2 in an eventual 8-3 victory.
The Yankees have won six of seven and moved a season-high 24 games over .500 entering Tuesday.
Judge adds another number to his Twins history
Only after the comeback was complete did another layer of Judge’s night come into focus. The broadcast leaderboard showed the Yankees captain with a 1.193 career OPS against the Twins franchise, the highest mark ever among hitters with at least 225 plate appearances against Minnesota.
That placed the Yankees captain ahead of Ted Williams at 1.124, Babe Ruth at 1.122, Hank Greenberg at 1.093 and Jose Bautista at 1.092. Judge now sits alone at the top of a list spanning generations of elite power hitters.
The gap is significant. Judge stands 69 OPS points ahead of Williams and 71 ahead of Ruth. He is 100 points clear of Greenberg and 101 ahead of Bautista. Monday’s homer did more than end his post-injury power drought. It reinforced a matchup advantage that now carries an all-time statistical marker.
Judge’s blast was also the 386th home run of his career, tying Aramis Ramírez for 70th on baseball’s all-time list. Johnny Bench, at 389, is next. The Yankees slugger reached that total despite losing 84 games this season to a stress fracture in his right first rib.
Bellinger sees the old Judge returning
Judge returned without a minor league rehab assignment and looked uneven through his first five games back. The Yankees needed evidence that his power could return before October, and Bellinger saw Monday’s swing as exactly that.
“It was only a matter of time. He’s the best hitter on the planet,” Bellinger said.
Caballero reached a similar conclusion after watching the ball disappear into the left-field seats. His reaction captured what the Yankees had been waiting to see since Judge rejoined the lineup.
“It feels like Judge is back,” Caballero said.
The Yankees captain left a warning though he was more measured. He said he was trying to improve every day, with the postseason as the ultimate target and meaningful regular-season games still in front of the Yankees.
The homer raised Judge’s season line to .243/.363/.515 with 18 home runs and 41 RBIs in 65 games. It came in his 21st at-bat since returning.
Judge’s Twins gap separates him from legends
The franchise OPS leaderboard gives the milestone unusual historical weight. Williams, Ruth and Greenberg represent three of baseball’s most feared hitters from earlier eras. Bautista was one of the American League’s defining power bats of the 2010s. Judge’s 1.193 mark clears all four under the same 225-plate-appearance minimum.
That threshold separates the record from a tiny matchup sample. Judge has accumulated enough opportunities against Minnesota for the comparison to carry substance, yet his production remains above every other hitter shown on the all-time list.
Yankees get the version of Judge they need
Aaron Boone had maintained that Judge’s timing was progressing even when the box scores offered little proof. Monday finally gave the Yankees a swing that matched that assessment.
“I’ve been pleased,” Boone said. “I haven’t been the least bit concerned about anything. … He’s not all the way where he’s going to get to, but he’s got 20-plus at-bats now, which I think is valuable. We still got a couple weeks now to go and he’s only going to get hopefully more sharp as we head to the finish line.”
The Yankees have 12 regular-season games remaining, including four against the Rays, so Judge’s return to impact form arrives with the division race and postseason preparation still active. New York has secured its place in October.
The next question is how close the Yankees captain can get to full form before the games become elimination games.
Against Minnesota, Judge has done enough damage to own a franchise-wide record. Monday’s swing made the latest example impossible to miss.
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