SAN FRANCISCO – Aaron Judge may be among the most prominent beneficiaries of the new Automatic Ball-Strike (ABS) system, given the frequency with which the Yankees’ captain has been rung up on called strikes over the past several years.
Judge tapped his helmet for the first time in a Major League game on Friday, overturning a call to extend a sixth-inning at-bat against Robbie Ray. He made the most of the added chance, blasting a two-run homer in a 3-0 victory over the Giants at Oracle Park. Friday's win marked the first time in Yankees history they’ve shut out their opponent in each of the first two games of a season.
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The homer marked the first hit of the season for Judge, supporting Cam Schlittler, who struck out eight over 5 1/3 dominant innings. Slowed in February by back/lat discomfort, Schlittler was capped at 68 pitches, permitting just one hit and no walks.
The drive was also the Yankees’ first home run of the season, coming fittingly from Judge, who hit 53 long balls last season while claiming his third AL MVP in four years.
Judge’s challenge came after Ray’s 1-0 slider was called a strike. ABS showed the pitch just missed the bottom of the zone, giving Judge a 2-0 count.
The homer came on the seventh pitch of the at-bat, a full-count 93 mph four-seamer that Judge slugged a Statcast-projected 405 feet, coming off the bat at 109.1 mph.
Later in the frame, Giancarlo Stanton greeted José Butto with a long homer into the left-field bleachers, marking the 60th time Judge and Stanton have homered in the same game (including postseason). The Yankees are 52-7 in the previous 59 games.
The all-time record for most times homering in the same game by teammate duos is 76, held by Eddie Mathews and Henry Aaron, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig are second, with 75.