Aaron Judge, in Saturday’s 9-3 loss at the Blue Jays, joined Yankees legends Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth as the franchise’s third player ever with 80 RBI before July.
In Sunday’s 8-1 win over Toronto (38-45), where New York (54-32) split the four-game series, Judge added to his historic start with a two-run homer.
As the Yankees look to turn the corner after a struggle through the second half of June, he leads MLB with 31 homers and 82 RBI.
“He’s in that company all the time now,” said manager Aaron Boone. “It’s incredible, what he’s doing. It really is. Kind of ho-hum 2-for-4 today with one off the batter’s eye. He’s in those conversations all the time now with Gehrig and Ruth and whatever superlative you can find. He keeps putting himself in those conversations.”
Echoing Boone’s sentiments, Gleyber Torres explained how the Yankees are feeding off of the captain’s energy entering July.
“Amazing,” Torres said. “It’s no surprise to anybody. When he’s healthy, he can do everything he can do. And it’s real special. … He’s a leader, so it’s amazing. I’m so glad I play with him and he keeps rolling.”
With New York battling the Baltimore Orioles for the AL East’s top spot, Judge — in contention for the Triple Crown while batting .316, atop MLB alongside Shohei Ohtani — does not pay the individual accolades much attention.
“It’d be cool, but it’s just not my focus,” Judge said. “Like a lot of guys in this room, we don’t play for stuff like that. We play to win. Every time you put on these pinstripes and wear the N.Y., you’re here to win. So if that comes with it, it’d be great. But we’re all focused on getting that championship first.”