SUPERSIZED
JUDGE BLASTS 2 MORE HOME RUNS IN YANKS’ ROUT OF BLUE JAYS
With the guru of the one-and-done policy in col l e ge bas ket bal l observing from Brian Cashman’s suite, the Yankees have to be thankful the polarizing process doesn’t exist in the big leagues.
Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari surely dreams about landing an athlete such as Aaron Judge — a perfect blend of s i ze, s t re ngth and athleticism that is carrying the Yankees on his broad shoulders.
Tuesday ni g ht Judge was part of a home-run orgy that lifted the Yankees to an 11-5 victory over the Blue Jays in front of an announced gathering of 30,058 at Yankee Stadium.
The Yankees’ victory halted a two-game losing streak and put the min a tie with the Orioles for first place in the AL East with a 16-9 ledger.
“He is a complete player,’’ manager Joe Girardi said of Judge — who homered twice, drove in four runs, walked twice and made a diving catch in right-center field in the fourth inning.
Brett Gardner hit two homers and Aaron Hicks one as the Yankees stopped a twogame losing streak against the slop-throwing Mat Latos.
Judge was serenaded by “MVP ’’ chants in the seventh when he hit a three-run homer off Jason Grill it hat upped the Yankees’ lead to 11-4. Judge leads the AL with 12 homers.
“I didn’t think much of it ,’’ Judge said of the chant. “It’s g re at . Fans are excited. We got a big lead and the fans are going a little crazy out there.’’
Remember how the biggest kid in Little League dominated? Well the 6-foot-7, 282- pound Judge looks like that type of hitter in the big leagues. And nothing like the hacker who whiffed 42 times in 84 at-bats a year ago in his first taste of the big leagues.
Masahiro Tanaka wasn’t as sharp as he was against the Red Sox on Thursday in Boston — when he f ired a threehit, compete-game shutout — but he certainly was fortunate to pitch when the Yankees filled the comfortable evening with long balls.
In 6 ¹/₃ innings Tanaka (4-1) gave up four runs and eight hits.
Former Yankee Steve Pearce homered twice off Tanaka for the Blue Jays, who are 9-18. Pear ce added a single and double and went 4-for-4.
Latos (1-1) worked four awful innings in which he gave up seven runs and 10 hits.
Obviously, Girardi is impressed with Judge’ s power but also mentioned the patience to accumulate 15 walks this season. And since Judge talked in spring training about being more aggressive at the plate he was asked how does aggressiveness and patience marry?
“If I am aggressive in the location that I am hunting I tend to lay off the pitches that are kind of borderline,’’ said Judge, who hit an opposite-field, solo homer to right in the third in addition to his three-run blast into the left-field seats in the seventh .“Last year I was kind of caught in between and was a little tentative. I was kind of trying to see the pitch and then swing instead of being aggressive and knowing I might get my pi tc h and be ready to drive it. When I am aggressive I am taking borderline pitch es .’’
Gardner, who didn’t have a homer or an RBI until Saturday when he hit two home runs and drove in four runs, said he doesn’t believe the hulking Judge is sneaking up on anybody.
“It’s a lot of fun to see him work. Everyone is on notice. They know what he’s capable of doing,’’ Gardner said.