The Yankees may have found themselves their next star. Aaron Judge, 24, is a physical specimen standing tall at 6'7" and weighing 282 pounds. He's currently hitting a cool .277 with five home-runs, including a 448-foot missile last week against the White Sox, and 12 RBI.
Judge was born in Linden, California and was adopted by Patty and Wayne Judge one day after he was born. He was a three-sport star in high school playing baseball, basketball, and football. He was a two-time All-League selection in baseball and an All-American as a senior. He received college football scholarship offers but he chose to pursue baseball. In the 2010 MLB Draft he was selected in the 31st round by the Oakland Athletics. However, he decided to attend college instead of join the A's farm system. He enrolled at Fresno State where he was named an All-American by Louisville Slugger in his freshman year and won the 2012 College Home Run Derby. In his junior year, Judge led the team in home runs, doubles, and RBIs. He was named All-Mountain West Conference in all three of his college seasons.
In the 2013 MLB Draft Judge was selected in the first round, 32nd overall, by the New York Yankees. However, he missed the 2013 with a torn quad, an injury he suffered while running the bases. He made his professional debut at Single-A Charleston in 2014. He batted .333 with nine home runs and 45 RBIs in 65 games. During the season, the Yankees promoted him to advanced Single-A in Tampa, where he hit .283 with 8 home runs and 33 RBIs in 66 games. In 2015, the Yankees invite him to spring training. Now, in Double-AA Trenton, Judge continued to impress hitting .284 with 12 home runs in 66 games. During the season, he was promoted to Triple-AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He hit .224 with eight home runs in 61 games for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He represented the Yankees in the 2015 All-Star futures game, but he was not a September call-up. In 2016, the Yankees again invited him to spring training and he started the season with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. In 93 games, he hit .270 with 19 home runs and 65 RBIs.
On Aug. 13th, he made his major league debut in right field against the Tampa Bay Rays. In his very first at-bat he hit his first major league home run. Judge also homered in his second MLB game. However, he struck out 42 times in 84 at-bats and his season ended early with a grade 2 right oblique strain in September. On Mar. 30, 2017, the Yankees announced Judge as the opening day right fielder for the season.
Now, as a rising star and full-time major leaguer, Judge is developing a reputation of being a big time slugger who punishes the baseball. In his short career, he already has two of the three longest home runs ever hit by a Yankee in the new Yankee Stadium which opened in 2009. Also, in this season, he has five of the 15 hardest hit balls in the majors. Nobody else appears on the list more than once. The particular home run against the White Sox in the YouTube video at the top of this article had an exit velocity of 116 mph and traveled 448 feet.
With his monstrous frame at 6'7" 282, he's drawing comparisons to Yankee legend Alex Rodriguez and current All-Star Giancarlo Stanton of the Miami Marlins. Judge, along with Gary Sanchez, Greg Bird, and others will lead the "Baby Bombers" into the future and they very well could be the next great Yankee team.
