NEW YORK -- After the Yankees were swept by the Rays for the first time since April 2021, Aaron Judge preached a simple message to New York’s lineup following their fifth straight loss: “We need to simplify.”
And in his very first at-bat back in the Bronx on Monday, Judge set the tone with a loud two-run blast off Angels starter Yusei Kikuchi, sending a hanging changeup a Statcast-projected 456 feet into the left-field bleachers at Yankee Stadium. Judge’s fifth homer of the year left the bat with an exit velocity of 116.2 mph -- the hardest-hit home run across the Majors so far -- and was the fourth-longest in MLB, as well.
He didn't stop there. After three-time MVP Mike Trout launched a game-tying three-run homer in the top of the sixth inning, Judge one-upped him in the bottom half with his second blast of the game to quickly put the Yanks ahead again. Another no-doubter punctuated by a casual bat flip, this one went a mere 398 feet and was hit with an exit velocity of 111.4 mph.
Judge wasn’t alone in his heroics. Trent Grisham broke out of his own slump: First with a go-ahead three-run pinch-hit blast in the fifth inning, and then a second, game-tying two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth. Grisham, who hadn’t notched an extra-base hit since March 31, set the stage for José Caballero to scamper home on a walk-off wild pitch, clawing an 11-10 Yankees win from the depths.
Following Sunday's loss at Tampa Bay, Judge felt that the lineup as a whole may have been pressing a bit, getting themselves in “some bad counts and bad situations.” The first two plate appearances for New York against Kikuchi showed that the club might have taken those words to heart. After leadoff hitter Paul Goldschmidt crushed a mistake 1-2 fastball into the left-center-field gap, Judge jumped on a 2-0 changeup that caught too much of the plate.
Judge now has 28 home runs that have traveled over 455 feet in the Statcast era (2015, including playoffs), the second most behind teammate Giancarlo Stanton (30).
This was also Judge's 47th career multihomer game, passing Mickey Mantle for the second most in Yankees franchise history. He trails only Babe Ruth, who had 68 such games.