Aaron Judge, the New York Yankees slugger who turned down a $230 million contract extension from the franchise is on his way to making history.
Sitting pretty at 60 home runs in a single season, the now-legendary outfielder is now one away from tying with Roger Maris’ American League record of 61 home runs. The right fielder set the record in 1961, which has remained unbeaten since. The Yankees closed out the game against the Red Sox 5-4 on Thursday
After their win over the Bosten Red Sox on Thursday, the Yankees only have 13 games left in the season, which might just be enough time for Judge to level the record and then beat it.
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Here’s a breakdown of how Judge played at-bat versus the Red Sox on Thursday.
The outfielder’s first two at-bat were walks. The first one came at the hands of Michael Wacha. The second one was a walk in the third inning.
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Moving into the fifth inning Wacha made short work of Judge, making the outfielder strike out. At his fourth at-bat, the 30-year-old walked on to base for the third time, marking what could have potentially been his final time at-bat for the game.
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Instead, Judge managed to make it to his fifth and final at-bat for the night, swinging hard for the fences through center field but falling short by a foot as he was caught out by Enrique Hernandez who comfortably made the catch.
Roger Maris’ legacy
As the game ended, Judge is now tied with what was once baseball legend Babe Ruth’s record. But how do Maris’ children feel about the 30-year-old outfielder coming for their father’s legacy?
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Speaking to Fox Sports before the game, Roger Maris Jr said that there were “mixed emotions.” He went on to say that breaking the record was “inevitable” given the way Judge has been playing and that he wished Judge the best of luck.