Randy Smith
New York Yankees' star Aaron Judge is having one of those seasons. You know what I'm talking about. A season that has people talking about where Judge fits in the conversation of the "Greatest Ever". Judge who just two seasons ago broke the record held by Roger Maris for 61 years when he hit his 62nd home run. Last year despite missing a good portion of the season with a foot injury his stats were on par with the numbers he put up in 2022 when he hit 62 home runs. And of course in 2024, Judge has dominated Major League Baseball as he leads both leagues with 41 home runs, 103 runs batted in and he's currently third in batting average with a .322 mark.
There is still time to think about Aaron Judge winning a Triple Crown by leading the American League in all three major categories.
Judge has been a big time star since his rookie season in 2017 when he hit 52 home runs and won the American League Rookie of the Year award. That was when he was 25 years old. He's now 32 and his 298 career home runs is a very impressive stat. And to think the 6'-7" 280 pound Judge has done it with no steroid use. He's just that big and that good. He is currently the Yankees team captain and is one of the most popular players to ever wear the pinstripes.
The Yankees made Judge a very rich man following the 2022 season when they signed him to a nine year, $360 million contract. That's $40 million a year and when you think about what he means to the Yankees, that's a real bargain. When he came on the scene at Yankee Stadium, people in New York talked about how down to earth he is. No big ego problems and he built a reputation of being a great teammate...thus his captain status for the last two years.
His career has been like a dream, with the only thing missing being a World Series ring. The 2024 Yankees are good enough to make that happen if their pitching holds up down the stretch. As of today, the Yanks are a half game ahead of the Orioles in the AL East with one of the best records in baseball. Stranger things have happened...like the Yanks big collapse in 2022 when they won the AL East by seven games but were swept by the Astros in the ALCS.
He's been called the "Greatest Player on the Planet." He is still honored at every home game by dozens of fans in the bleachers wearing judge's robes, holding signs that say, "All Rise". More important than that however is the fact that Aaron Judge is a really good person and someone who's considered to be a great role model. And wouldn't it be great if he broke his own AL home run record? He needs 22 more with seven weeks of the season and 49 games left. Not a bad way to finish one of the best seasons ever.
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Randy Smith can be reached at rsmithsports@epbfi.com