New York Yankees star Aaron Judge launched his 49th home run of the season on Friday night as part of a win against the Colorado Rockies (box score). That home run, a sixth-inning shot to put New York up by a 3-0 margin, extended his streak to four consecutive games. Factor in a multi-homer game on Wednesday, and he's added five home runs and eight runs batted in to his totals since play began on Tuesday.
The scariest thing about Judge's recent heater? He claims he's not yet locked in.
"I'm trying to get locked in. Once we get locked in, I'll let you guys know," Judge told reporters after Friday's game. "I try to keep it simple. The best thing I can say is, I try not to do too much every single day. We've got a great lineup, we've got a great team. If we just go out there and do our jobs, good things are going to happen."
Mind you, Judge has thus far in August batted .433/.558/.955 with 10 home runs, 20 runs batted in, and more walks than strikeouts in his first 19 games. One can only fathom what, precisely, Judge being "locked in" would look like if not that.
#AllRise and maybe just stay risen.
— MLB (@MLB) August 24, 2024
FORTY-NINE home runs for Aaron Judge. pic.twitter.com/Je4x6KzpBz
Overall this season, Judge entered Saturday hitting .333/.464/.728 (228 OPS+) with 49 home runs, 119 runs batted in, and six stolen bases. His contributions have been estimated to be worth 9.1 Wins Above Replacement, according to Baseball Reference. Judge is now on pace to hit more than 61 home runs this season. His career-high is the 62 he hit in 2022, which stands as the American League and Yankees franchise records.
Should Judge again clear the 60-homer threshold, he'll become just the third player in Major League Baseball history to pull off the feat twice. The others being Mark McGwire (1998, 1999) and Sammy Sosa (1998, 1999, 2001). MLB's single-season home-run record, of course, belongs to Barry Bonds, who launched 73 back in 2001.
Judge and the Yankees will continue their series against the Rockies on Saturday. The Rockies are expected to start right-hander Bradley Blalock, who has not yet allowed a home run in 12 1/3 big-league innings.
