NEW YORK – Aaron Judge has 62 or more at stake as he aims for another home run record.
The Yankees captain hit his 50th and 51st home runs of the year, the second of which came in the seventh inning on Sunday – when the Yankees hit two home runs in a row – en route to a 10-3 win over the Rockies.
“It’s unreal,” said Giancarlo Stanton, who hit the third of those three home runs in a row, further energizing the 41,324 fans at Yankee Stadium.
“(Judge) does something special every day and I don’t take for granted how good he is, what a pillar he is for our offense and our team in general.”
Judge is the fifth MLB player to hit at least 50 home runs for the third time in his career and is on pace to hit 63 home runs with 31 games to go, and is expected to surpass his AL single-season record of 62, which he set in 2022.
But Judge’s blistering pace – with seven home runs in his last six games and 16 in his last 27 since July 26 – now puts Barry Bonds’ MLB record of 73 home runs in a season set in 2001 in the conversation.
“I’m not going to put any limits on Aaron Judge,” said manager Aaron Boone, who promised to look up a thesaurus on the Americans’ Sunday night train to Washington for their next series.
“I’m honestly at a loss for words” to describe Judge, the first player in MLB history to have a batting average of at least .375 with 47 home runs in a single season through 102 games.
As for surpassing his own AL home run record, Judge tries to avoid such thoughts.
“I don’t think it helps anyone if I go up there and hit home runs,” Judge said. “I got to this point by trying to be a good hitter and a good teammate.”
“If I do that, we can look at the end of the year and see what the numbers look like.”
Curtain up and chants for Aaron Judge and Juan Soto
With one out in the seventh inning, Juan Soto, Judge and Stanton scored against Colorado right-handed reliever Jeff Criswell to give the Yanks a 7-3 lead.
At the suggestion of his manager, Judge followed the curtain call, even though “I didn’t want to go out,” he said. “But the fans loved it.”
In between the familiar “MV-P” chants for Judge, the afternoon crowd in right field chanted for Soto to stay beyond 2024, his year as a free agent.
“The fans are excited and they have every reason to be,” Judge said of Soto. “He’s an incredible player who has done a lot for us this year and they definitely want to see a lot more of that.”
“Ultimately, it will be his decision and what is best for him and his family,” said Judge, who is expected to speak with Soto about his future after the season.
“We will do what we can from this side.”
One of Scott Boras’ clients, a typically embarrassed Soto, smiled and said of the chanting fans, “You need to talk to (GM Brain) Cashman about his future in the Bronx.”
Yankees “spoiled” by Aaron Judge’s “video game numbers”
Before hitting a single to right field in the seventh inning, Judge hit a two-run homer to left-center field in the first inning (No. 50) against Rockies left-handed starter Austin Gomber.
This means Judge has reached 50 home runs in one season three times, along with Sammy Sosa (four times), Mark McGwire (four times), Babe Ruth (four times) and Alex Rodriguez (three times).
“Really incredible … maybe better than the numbers in video games,” said Yankees starter Marcus Stroman. “We’re so spoiled now.”
Judge’s first home run gave Stroman a 2-1 lead after a 31-pitch first inning in which two errors by third baseman Jazz Chisholm and a botched double play led to a long inning.
Stroman lasted five innings and the Yankees’ first game with two consecutive home runs in an inning since September 17, 2020, later decided a 4-3 game.
“I was pretty happy about Stanton’s (home run),” Judge said of his third home run in three games, No. 23 this season.
Since coming off the injured list (hamstring) on July 29, “he really completes the middle of the lineup just by the way he swings the bat,” Judge said, which also gives him additional protection in the lineup.
The Rockies (48-83) may have had no incentive to avoid Judge, but the AL East-leading Yanks (77-54) will face playoff contenders in September who may pass Judge to first base more often.
No matter what strategy he pursues and how close Judge may be to another home run, Boone says his captain will be coached to have good at-bats and aim for a championship finish.
“That’s his obsession,” Boone said.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Aaron Judge hits home runs No. 50 and 51, Yankees hit three home runs in a row
