CLEVELAND — Every team that loses its best player needs someone to fill the void, and the Yankees have found their answer in the most fitting place. With Aaron Judge sidelined by a fractured rib, Jazz Chisholm Jr. has grabbed the wheel, and a hostile crowd in Cleveland only seemed to push him harder.
Chisholm has always carried the flair and the swagger. Now he is backing it up with the kind of production that has turned him into the driving force of the Yankees lineup at the exact moment they needed one to emerge.
A statement series in Cleveland
The clearest evidence came during the Yankees’ three-game sweep of the Guardians. Jazz Chisholm did not just contribute. He dominated, and he did it against a crowd that spent the series booing his every move.
In Wednesday’s 8-4 finale, Chisholm racked up a stolen base, two runs scored and three RBIs, a day after his go-ahead home run won Tuesday’s game. He sandwiched a two-run triple between a pair of Cleveland errors in the finale, repeatedly putting himself at the center of the action. The Guardians faithful tried to rattle him with chants, and he answered by helping bury their team. For a player who feeds on emotion, the hostile environment was the perfect stage.
A bat that is all the way back
The development matters the most for the Yankees. Chisholm is no longer the slumping version that frustrated fans early in the season. He has rounded back into a genuine offensive force.
Over his last 196 plate appearances, Chisholm has posted a 123 wRC+, marking him as a well above-average hitter and a far cry from his rough start. That stretch suggests he is essentially all the way back to the dynamic player the Yankees traded for, the one who reached 30 home runs and 30 steals a year ago. The timing could not be better, with the lineup desperate for someone to step up while Judge heals.
That resurgence has him pushing into a conversation few expected earlier this year. There has even been buzz about Chisholm entering the All-Star picture, a remarkable turnaround for a player who looked lost in April. His blend of power, speed and defense at second base gives the Yankees a dimension few teams can match.
Borrowing more than just a bat
Part of Chisholm’s surge has come with a quirky and now-famous habit. He has leaned on his teammates’ equipment, most notably swinging Judge’s bat for home runs in back-to-back games, a superstition that has become a real spark.
He has also borrowed Giancarlo Stanton’s pants as a slump-busting trick, embracing whatever keeps the good vibes going. The lighthearted approach fits a player who plays with joy, and the Yankees are happy to let him ride the wave. With Judge out, Chisholm has effectively adopted the captain’s lumber as his own, turning a fun storyline into tangible results.
Boone embraces his unique star
Manager Aaron Boone has come to appreciate everything that makes Chisholm tick, including the colorful things he says. Boone was asked about his second baseman’s habit of speaking his mind and telling himself big things, and he leaned into the charm of it.
“Sometimes it’s pie in the sky and cosmic, but at the end of the day, he cares, and he’s a really good player, and we love our Jazz,” Boone said.
Boone also acknowledged that Chisholm is a personality who keeps the clubhouse and the media engaged. He sees the value in a player who is not afraid to be himself.
“Jazz likes to tell himself a lot of things,” Boone said. “Jazz is good for you guys to talk to. He gives you some good nuggets.”
The engine driving a hot Yankees team
The bigger picture shows just how important Chisholm has become to the Yankees. The sweep pushed them to 41-26, a season-high 15 games over .500, and pulled them even with the Tampa Bay Rays atop the American League East.
It was the Yankees’ first sweep of at least three games in Cleveland since 2007 and avenged a home series loss to the Guardians last week. While the bottom of the order produced all series and Carlos Rodon delivered a key quality start, it has been Chisholm providing the steady jolt of energy and production that a Judge-less lineup requires. He cannot replicate Judge’s numbers, but he can be the heartbeat, and lately he has been exactly that.
The Yankees now head to Toronto for a weekend series against the Blue Jays, riding a four-game winning streak. For now, the story is clear. With their captain on the shelf, the Yankees have found a new engine, and his name is Jazz Chisholm. The boos in Cleveland only made the message louder.
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