Aaron Judge doesn’t just lead the world in homers, he’s also helping his teammates add to their total.
Judge hit two more blasts in Monday’s 14-4 win over the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park and then let new teammate Jazz Chisholm Jr. use his bat in the top of the ninth against Phillies catcher Garrett Stubbs.
Chisholm ended up going deep for a second time on the night, giving Judge 39 homers on the season — and his bat 40.
Chisholm noted that he didn’t think he’d ever had a hit while facing a position player on the mound, so he picked up Judge’s bat.
“I told him I was either going up there right-handed or using his bat,” said the lefty-swinging Chisholm. “It worked.”
Judge said he told Chisholm, “Make sure you use it [right] and he did.”
And Judge added he thought he should get credit for another half a homer.
Despite the result, Chisholm won’t use it again any time soon.
“Definitely not,” Chisholm said. “That bat is so heavy.”
It’s just fine for Judge, who has 99 RBIs to go along with the 39 home runs after a solo homer in the top of the first and then a two-run, 430-foot shot to left in the seventh.
Judge lamented his three strikeouts rather than soaking in the homers, but his offensive prowess left Aaron Boone almost speechless.
“He gets walked and pitched around,” Boone said. “It’s amazing. What he’s doing in this hitting climate, [what] he and Juan [Soto] are doing together, I hope everyone is enjoying it.”
Soto also doubled twice, as he and Judge combined for four extra-base hits and six RBIs and provided yet another example of why Tuesday’s trade deadline is so vital to the Yankees, who are only guaranteed one season of the duo as teammates before Soto can hit free agency.
For someone like Chisholm, who is only getting to see Judge as a teammate for the first time, he’s trying to soak in as much as possible.
“To see up [close] what he does and the way he goes about it and the way he works is sick,” Chisholm said. “It’s the first time I’m really seeing a player work like him.”
Instead of watching from afar and seeing occasional highlights of his homers, Chisholm has been impressed with what Judge does off the field.
“For me, it’s the prep for the day,” Chisholm said. “You see the mistake pitch he hits out, but up close, you see the pitches he takes and the pitches he looks at.”
