Aaron Judge, the New York Yankees superstar, is known for his unflappable attitude. The Yankees are playing in San Francisco this weekend, and the fans at Oracle Park haven’t let him forget his past with them, and he’s handling it well.
Judge claimed he didn’t mind being booed by Giants fans in his first game at the stadium, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
“I didn’t know what to expect,” Judge said about the crowd reaction. “But I didn’t mind it.”
Judge, of course, negotiated with San Francisco during free agency before resigning with New York two years ago. The all-time AL single-season home run leader is from Northern California and grew up a Giants fan, so signing with the organization would have been a homecoming for him.
It wasn’t meant to be, though, because he thought the Yankees gave him a better chance of winning in the long run. Judge signed a nine-year, $360 million contract with the Bronx Bombers, and a year and a half later, they are now leading the American League.
Judge’s first MLB game in his hometown was memorable, as he hit two home runs and drove in four runs in the Yankees’ 6-2 win. According to X user Emily Nyman, the 6-foot-7, 282-pound outfielder’s second home run to dead center even prompted San Francisco commentators to drop a hilarious remark in disbelief.
“I don’t think this one’s coming back, either,” they joked as the ball sailed into the San Francisco night.
The Yankees’ social media team couldn’t resist joining in on the fun. The club’s X account cleverly referenced a controversial Judge-related tweet by Jon Heyman of the New York Post, as reported by Talkin’ Baseball.
“That ball appears headed to deep center,” New York tweeted, referencing Heyman’s “Arson Judge appears headed to Giants” post. Heyman’s mistake and misrepresentation went viral, establishing himself in Yankees Twitter mythology (X communities still say “Twitter.”)
Judge currently leads the league with 20 home runs and a 1.056 OPS. Will he have a season like his historic 2022 campaign?
Judge and the Yankees are on track for a special season.
Judge had a rough start to the year, but found his groove in May. The five-time All-Star hit.371/.488/.928 with 14 home runs, 27 RBI, and a 1.415 OPS for the month. In May, he broke Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig’s record most extra-base hits by a Yankee, totaling 26.
This likely caused a sigh of relief among New York fans, since Judge was hitting.174 as of April 22nd. As excellent as Juan Soto and the rest of the club have been, it’s improbable that the Yankees will win their 28th championship without their skipper performing to his full capacity.
Through Friday’s games, New York leads the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East by two games, 40-19. Although there are plenty of reasons to be excited about the squad right now, it can’t slow down if it wants to win the division, as Baltimore isn’t easy to beat.
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