New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge is known for having an unflappable mindset. With the Yankees playing in San Francisco this weekend, the fans at Oracle Park haven't let him forget his history with them, and he's taking it in stride.
Judge said he didn't mind getting booed by Giants fans in his first-ever game at their stadium, via Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
“I didn’t know what to expect,” Judge said of the fan reaction. “But I didn’t mind it.”
Judge, of course, negotiated with San Francisco in free agency before re-signing with New York two years ago. The all-time AL single-season home run leader hails from northern California and grew up a Giants fan, so signing to the team would've been a homecoming for him.
It wasn't meant to be, however, as he believed that the Yankees gave him a better chance to win long-term. Judge signed a nine-year, $360 million deal with the Bronx Bombers, and a year and a half later, they now find themselves atop the AL.
Judge's first MLB contest in his hometown was one for the books, as he cracked two homers and drove in four runs in New York's 6-2 victory. The 6-foot-7, 282-pound outfielder's second homer to dead center even caused San Francisco's broadcasters to drop a funny line in amazement, via X user Emily Nyman.
“I don't think this one's coming back, either,” they quipped after the ball soared into the San Francisco night.
The Yankees' social media team couldn't resist getting in on the action, either. The club's X account made a slick reference to an infamous Judge-related tweet made by the New York Post's Jon Heyman, via Talkin' Baseball.
“That ball appears headed to deep center,” New York tweeted, harkening back to Heyman's “Arson Judge appears headed to Giants” tweet. Heyman's misspelling and misinformation went viral, cementing himself in Yankees Twitter lore (X communities still say “Twitter.”)
Judge now leads the league with 20 homers and a 1.056 OPS. Will he have a season comparable to his historic 2022 campaign?
Judge and the Yankees are on pace for a special year
Judge had a slow start to the year, but regained his mojo in May. The five-time All-Star slashed .371/.488/.928 with 14 homers, 27 RBI, and a 1.415 OPS across the entire month. He also broke Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig's record for extra-base hits by a Yankee in May, finishing with 26.
This probably caused a big sigh of relief among New York's fanbase, as Judge was hitting .174 as of April 22nd. As good as Juan Soto and the rest of the team have been, it's unlikely that the Yankees will win their 28th ring without their captain playing at his full potential.
At 40-19, New York has a two-game lead over the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East through Friday's games. Although there are plenty of reasons to be excited about the team at the moment, it can't slow down if it hopes to win the division, as Baltimore is nothing to sneeze at.
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