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Aaron Judge Continues to Shine Despite Yankees’ Recent Slump

By Alexander Evans

Jun 26, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) looks on after scoring during the fourth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 26, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) looks on after scoring during the fourth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports /
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Aaron Judge continues to shine while the Yankees continue to rust. Can his prowess eventually turn the Yankees around soon?

Rookie Aaron Judge is proving day-by-day that his incredible first half of the 2017 season is no flash in the pan.

The right fielder mashed a 439-foot home run into the visiting bullpen at Yankee Stadium on Saturday afternoon, providing the only bright spot in a miserable 8-1 loss to the Texas Rangers and continuing to defy the odds and produce at a level that most baseball analysts thought he would be unable to do.

Despite his team’s recent skid, Judge continues to lead the league in most offensive categories and, as the month of June transitions into July, his hot start can no longer be considered a fluke.

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At the present time, Judge leads the majors leagues in wins above replacement (WAR) with 4.6, a .693 slugging percentage, 1.136 OPS, OBP at .443 and in home runs with 26.

His numbers are even better when compared to his counterparts in the American League, where Judge leads in RBI with 59 and is tied with Tampa Bay’s Corey Dickerson for the top average at .330. His 67 runs are the most in the A.L. and second-most in the major leagues, his 86 hits are good for ninth place in the A.L. and Judge’s 28 consecutive games reaching base safely is the second-longest such streak in the majors this year.

His average is tied for the fifth-highest in baseball, while his RBI total is good for a tie for third-best,

Judge has been the picture of consistency for the Yankees from April through June, having it 10 home runs in April, seven in May and nine in June with a few more days to go. He’s been equally as consistent in terms of RBI and hits throughout the first half as well, having totaled 23 hits and 20 RBI in April, followed by 33 hits and 17 RBI in May and 30 hits with 22 RBI so far in June.

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For those who thought Judge would hit a slump by now, these numbers prove that Judge has no intention of hitting a slump and that the excuse that opposing pitchers will eventually figure him

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out is no longer valid.

The soon-to-be All-Star’s incredible season is also shaking up the record books, and Judge has the potential to break numerous records if he continues on his torrid pace. It starts with his own team’s record number of home runs for a rookie, which is held by Joe DiMaggio with 29.

Judge blasted his 26th home run on Saturday, and could very well tie or beat DiMaggio’s record by the midway point of the season. Judge is also on track to at least challenge Mark McGwire’s rookie record for home runs in a season, having it 49 of them while playing his first season in the majors with the Oakland Athletics in 1987.

He’s already more than halfway there with more than half of the season to play, so he has about as good a chance as anybody of shattering McGwire’s record and becoming the all-time rookie home run leader.

Aaron Judge has been the one highlight in an otherwise difficult month for the Yankees, who have lost 10 of their last 12 games and have dropped out of first place.

Judge has been able to continue his torrid offensive pace, and his consistency is evident from month to month and shows that he might not hit a lull that experts believed he might. If he does in fact keep it up, there’s no reason why he can’t join Ichiro Suzuki and Fred Lynn as the only rookies to win both the MVP and Rookie of the Year Awards in the same season.

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