New York Yankees take pressure off of both Stanton and Judge with trade

By pairing up Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge, the New York Yankees have taken the pressure off of both sluggers.

In 2017, when you thought of the New York Yankees, you probably thought of Aaron Judge. When you thought of the Miami Marlins, you most certainly thought of Giancarlo Stanton. Now in 2018, when you think of the Yankees, some will still think of Judge while others will think of Stanton.

The two mammoth sluggers can split the spotlight this season with neither player having to be “the man”. General manager Brian Cashman referred to the Stanton acquisition as adding to the Yankees’ “band of merry men”.

Yes, after hitting 59 home runs, Stanton is already drawing 70+ HR expectations when he moves to Yankee Stadium in 2018. However, he won’t have to carry the offense in New York.

Marcell Ozuna, Christian Yelich, Dee Gordon, Justin Bour, and J.T. Realmuto formed a great supporting cast to Stanton in Miami. But Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, Greg Bird, Didi Gregorius, Brett Gardner, and Gleyber Torres have the potential to top that crew.

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Making a team-high $25 million will certainly put pressure on Stanton but knowing he has Judge or Sanchez batting behind him should help him relax a bit.

As for Aaron Judge, the reigning AL Rookie of the Year does not need to repeat his 52-homer season. If Judge can hit 30 or so dingers, Stanton should more than make up for the difference.

Many lineup projections have Stanton hitting behind Judge, which should get Judge plenty of good pitches to hit. Opposing pitchers can’t pitch around Judge and put him on base with Stanton up next.

The New York Yankees lineup got deeper with the acquisition of Stanton and it appears that more hitters could be added in the coming days. With a deep lineup, no one player has to shoulder all of the pressure. If one guy doesn’t get it done, the next guy up in the order is more than capable.

Next: Giancarlo Stanton’s effect on the Yankees' 2019 free agency

With their blockbuster trade, the New York Yankees took pressure off of both Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge. Having those two sluggers relaxed in the middle of their lineup in 2018 is frightening for opposing pitchers and exciting for the New York Yankees and their fans.