New York Yankees All-Star slugger Aaron Judge spoke with reporters after Tuesday’s 5-4 loss at the Toronto Blue Jays and indicated he’s not yet sweating his slow start to the season.
“It’s baseball,” Judge said, as shared by Max Goodman of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. “You go through ups and downs like this throughout the year. Obviously, you don’t want to start out like that. But we keep throwing out wins. We didn’t win tonight, but all we can do is show up tomorrow and keep working and end the series with a win.”
While ESPN stats show that Judge entered Wednesday tied for the MLB lead with 16 walks, he posted a lackluster .182 batting average with three home runs, nine RBI and a .731 OPS across his first 18 games of the campaign. Such numbers generated few headlines when the Yankees were 12-3, but they have lost three in a row for the first time this season.
Judge went a combined 0-8 with four strikeouts across back-to-back defeats at Toronto.
Meanwhile, new teammate Juan Soto has become an instant fan favorite due largely to his impressive performances over his first 18 contests with the Yankees. Soto began Wednesday with a .324 average, a .947 OPS, three homers and 15 RBI.
There’s currently no sign that Soto’s presence is having any negative impact on Judge. Thus, some understandably may assume the 2022 American League Most Valuable Player is still bothered by the sore core that caused him to skip 10 Grapefruit League games in March.
Judge insisted that injury along with the spring shutdown has nothing to do with his play through the middle of April.
“Just like every year, I’m still trying to improve, still trying to work,” Judge added during his comments. “When I’m getting my pitch, I’m just missing it. We gotta keep throwing out good at-bats, take my walks when I can if I don’t get anything and just keep staying aggressive. That’s the only way to get out there and put some hits, especially with our lineup is you gotta keep swinging.”
It is, of course, very early into the season, and Yankees manager Aaron Boone has repeatedly hinted he believes it’s only a “matter of time” before Judge heats up. Judge’s numbers aren’t yet alarming, but one can’t help but wonder if he’s still playing through some discomfort in his abdomen.
The Yankees finish their three-game tilt at Toronto on Wednesday afternoon.
