The New York Yankees secured a playoff spot earlier this week. However, Aaron Boone's team has its sights set much higher. After reaching 50 home runs on the season against the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, Aaron Judge entered Thursday's matchup wanting to do more damage. However, the White Sox did not let him, letting him break a record set by Ted Williams.
Judge doubled to left field in his first at-bat of the game. The next time he stepped into the batter's box, New York had two runners on base. Instead of risking a three-run home run, Chicago chose to intentionally walk him and load the bases.
That marked the 35th time that Judge has been walked intentionally this year, setting a new record according to Major League Baseball's Bryan Hoch.
“35th intentional walk of the season for Aaron Judge. That's a new AL record, surpassing Ted Williams (34 in 1957),” Hoch said. “Intentional walks were first tracked in 1955.”
Judge is one of the most feared hitters MLB has to offer. The Yankees star and Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh are in a tight AL MVP race. However, opposing pitchers have not minded facing the latter in almost any situation. Judge, on the other hand, presents too big a threat as a hitter for teams to risk.
The Yankees clinched their playoff spot in dramatic fashion. However, New York's goal is winning the World Series and avenging an embarrassing showing in 2024 in the Fall Classic. Having Judge at the help gives Boone a big advantage against almost anyone. The Yankees manager is ironing out his playoff rotation, trusting his captain to lead the offense into the postseason with momentum.
Judge has made history down the back stretch of the regular season. Opposing pitchers are unlikely to intentionally walk him in the playoffs, though. Regardless, he passed Williams in the record book and may not get passed for years.
