Captain obvious
No kidding, Yankees a vastly better team when Judge actually plays
TAMPA — The long national nightmare is over. Aaron Judge returned to the Yankees lineup on Wednesday night against the Pirates and, temporarily at least, stopped the noise about the abdominal discomfort heard around the world.
There is nothing that causes unease among these Yankees quite like discussing injuries in general and those involving Judge very specifically. Whether it is because Judge does not like his status out on the street and the Yankees would rather allow full beards than discomfort their captain or simply because they are manglers — incompetent or dishonest, you take your pick — when it comes to revealing the extent of their various pains, strains and fractures, there is a touchiness that resonates around the organization when the subject is injury and Judge.
So I think we need the “duh” moment here to reiterate to both the team and the captain why everyone is so interested — because the Yankees are one team with Judge and another without him. Again, duh.
“He’s probably the best righthanded hitter in the game,” Anthony Rizzo said. “He brings onbase. He brings average. He brings power. He can steal a base. He’s amazing on defense. He’s an MVP contender every year.”
Aside from an inexplicable 2019 when every Ford, Cameron and Tauchman they used performed as if possessed by Mantle and the Yankees went 43-20 in the games Judge did not start, his other six seasons tell quite a different story.
In those seasons, the Yankees were 411-275 when Judge started (.599) and 89-88 (.503) when he didn’t. In the last four seasons, Judge has not started, coincidentally considering his uniform number, 99 games. The Yanks are 54-55. They are 252-175 with him starting.
“He brings so much to the table in everything he does when he plays,” hitting coach James Rowson said. “Obviously, there is his talent, but his presence is huge, too.”
Again, let’s define it a little further — if it is needed. Judge has had three seasons in which he was not on the IL for an injury (he missed 11 days with COVID in 2021). In those seasons, he finished first, second and fourth for the AL MVP. In the season he accumulated his secondmost plate appearan- ces, he set the thenMLB rookie homer record (52) in 2017. In the season with his most plate appearances, he set a Yankees homer record (62) in 2022.
And he was having a season in 2023 not that far different from his historic 2022. Then he ran into the right-field wall at Dodgers Stadium on June 3. At that point, he was — for example — averaging a homer every 11.1 plate appearances, the same as when he hit 62. But his great toe sprain kept him out for eight weeks and a Yankees offense that was being carried by him, collapsed — and so did the Yankees.
Juan Soto’s acquisition should alleviate some of the loss if Judge misses time. But it is Judge. And the idea is that having that duo together provides for the Yankees something akin to what the Dodgers had last season when Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman finished second and third for NL MVP and helped the Dodgers average 5.6 runs per game, second in the majors. The comparison is more pertinent because Betts and Freeman led an offense that de-emphasized a starting rotation that lost every key member for a long stretch and finished with a 4.57 ERA — the worst by the franchise since it was the Brooklyn Robins and had a 4.76 starter ERA in 1929.
The Yankees know they will be without ace Gerrit Cole from the outset and will be leaning heavily on Nestor Cortes, Carlos Rodon, Marcus Stroman and the unproven. Thus, like the 100-win 2023 Dodgers, the Yanks are going to need their offense to protect the rotation.
That — here comes another “duh” moment — emphasizes why the 2024 Yankees need Judge in full. Which seems to be the whole idea of the missed spring training time. Rizzo, who is as close to Judge as anyone on the team, said with some disdain about the recent “will he or won’t he play” coverage of Judge, “[Playing in spring] means absolutely nothing.”
Agreed. Amen. A Yankees official could have demystified it all at some point — with Judge’s permission instead of general body soreness themselves into the distrust zone. Because this is preparation time and all that matters for Judge is getting himself right to maximize his at-bats during the regular season.
“I mean he’s the best there is in the big league, so you know, having him in that lineup is huge,” Jose Trevino said. “Not only on the offensive side, but defense and his presence alone just sends a powerful, powerful statement to our team.”
Right. The statement is loud and, well, “duh” — because it is Aaron Judge, after all.