NEW YORK -- History suggests that when Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton hit home runs in the same game, the Yankees usually win. That rule doesn’t apply when Mike Trout is in town, who authored one the greatest series ever by a visiting player in the Bronx.
Judge and Stanton went deep together for the 61st time (including the postseason), but Trout kept punishing pinstriped pitching, crushing his fifth homer of the series in the Yankees’ 11-4 loss to the Angels on Thursday afternoon.
Trout is leaving, and not a moment too soon -- the Yankees practically volunteered to drive him to the airport. He’s the first player to hit five homers in a series against the Yankees since the Blue Jays’ George Bell in 1990, a feat no one has ever achieved previously in New York.
"It's unreal. Cool showing from him and Judgie all series,” Stanton said. “Obviously, you don't want that against us, but you've got to acknowledge the greatness.”
The Yankees had won 53 of the previous 60 occurrences in which Judge and Stanton homered together. That didn’t hold, as Max Fried battled his command before the Halos pounded a wobbly bullpen.
“We obviously haven’t been playing to our standards, but we know the kind of club that we are, especially the way we started off,” Fried said. “That standard that we have, we’re going to get back to it.”
Oswald Peraza continued to torment his former club with a three-RBI performance, cracking a two-run homer in the first inning and chasing Fried with a game-tying double as part of a four-run sixth.
Once a top prospect in the Yanks’ system, Peraza went 5-for-10 (.500) with a double, two homers and four RBIs in the series.
“He looked like what we were excited about several years ago,” manager Aaron Boone said. “He absolutely hurt us.”
Trout went deep in the seventh, spoiling Angel Chivilli’s Yankees debut by crushing a changeup that traveled a Statcast-projected 446 feet into the left-field bleachers.
It was a comfortable trip home for the New Jersey product, backed by family support and looking every bit back to his healthy MVP form. Trout has homered in five straight games against the Yankees, dating to last season.
“It was definitely fun, from the beginning of the game to the end,” Trout said. “It just felt like we were going back and forth with each other.”
As José Caballero said: “He’s one of the greatest in the sport, and he’s showing it.”
The Yankees seemed to have learned their lesson by the eighth inning, when Ryan Yarbrough was charged with a balk, opening first base for a Trout intentional walk. Jo Adell then slugged a grand slam into the right-field seats.
“Story of the series – we just didn’t keep the ball in the ballpark,” Boone said. “That’s something we’ve done really well up until this series, and they just kept coming at us.”
The four-game split shone a spotlight on legitimate concerns about the Yankees' bullpen, which Boone has called “a work in progress.” But it was made memorable by Judge and Trout, who swapped high-octane haymakers.
“It’s good for the game, watching those two guys,” Angels manager Kurt Suzuki said. “I don’t want Judge to hit home runs like that against us all the time, but it was an impressive show by those two.”
Judge is tied for the MLB lead in homers with Jordan Walker after blasting his eighth homer of the season -- and fourth in as many games -- a first-inning blast off Brent Suter.
It was the 89th first-inning homer of Judge’s career, third in franchise history behind Babe Ruth (123) and Mickey Mantle (103).
Stanton has been quiet of late, but he gave New York the lead in the third with his second homer of the season, a two-run shot off Nick Sandlin that traveled a Statcast-projected 446 feet on its way to Monument Park.
“Just jumped on a heater -- [Sandlin has a] low slot, so I made sure I could get it up in the air,” Stanton said.
Eddie Mathews and Henry Aaron (76) hold the record for most times homering in the same game as teammates (including postseason), with Ruth and Lou Gehrig (75) next.
Judge and Stanton could surpass a trio of iconic sluggers as soon as this season, with Willie McCovey/Willie Mays (68), Duke Snider/Gil Hodges (68) and Billy Williams/Ron Santo (64) on deck.
Whenever it happens, the odds say it should come with a win -- as long as Trout isn’t in the building.