KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In the aftermath of the Game 2 loss to the Yankees, Aaron Boone was acting unbelievable regarding questions about Aaron Judge's October struggles — and I get it.
Boone was hired because management wanted a guy who would dabble in the paint faster than criticize players publicly. We also know that Mr. Boone was responding to similar investigations during the judge's April doldrums, because he basically scoffed at them by saying, “Just watch.” The reward was a near-certain second AL MVP season.
But of course that was in April. This is October. There are no long seasons ahead. If the judges don't stir things up quickly, we're just in for a long winter. If there's anyone who understands the value of this iconic moment for this organization during this time, it's Boone. After all, even if he was going to sip paint thinner by the gallon, he was being tipped to be the Yankees' manager after hitting the franchise's eternal home run in October 2004. Body.
So Aaron Boone currently has more timeless moments in the postseason than Aaron Judge.
Nor is Boone dealing with the bigger picture. This isn't just an issue for the 2024 Division Series. Judge had one infield hit and four strikeouts against Kansas City, giving him a .208 batting average and 70 strikeouts in 207 at-bats in 46 playoff games. His strikeout rate of 33.8 percent is the second highest in postseason history (min. 175 at-bats). to right-hitter catcher Martin Maldonado (34.2 percent). Through two Division Series games since 2022, Judge has six hits in 43 at-bats, three RBIs, and 19 strikeouts.
“He's going to get more opportunities,” Boone said. “And I keep betting on him.”
What options does Boone have?
The Yankees won't be able to reach the Canyon of Heroes, and probably not even by the Royals, unless their captain comes back to life. The Yankees will continue to do whatever their star wants. They are a team that relies on home runs. And they perform best when their biggest stars are hitting home runs.
So when Boone tries to defend Judge by pointing out that he had a walk and an infield hit in Game 2, it's important to note that he's not talking about Jon Barty.
The Royals outscored the Yankees in two games. The Royals' best chance to land a knockout blow in each game and make the judges believe they were in the wrong division came with two on, no outs, one inning and tied in both games. He struck out both innings.
And those strikeouts highlighted two big problems for Judge during this period — he was particularly bad at putting runners in scoring position, and he was nearly useless with two strikes.
Judge went 6-for-35 (.171) with runners in scoring position in the postseason. However, since October 2017, when he recorded his personal best, he has only had 2 hits in 23 at bats (.087) and 12 strikeouts.
By the time the count reached two strikes, Judge was 13-for-113 (.115) with two home runs and 70 strikeouts in the playoffs. Judge, who has two strikeouts in his last 20 at-bats, is 0-for-18 with two walks and 11 strikeouts.
This is truly amazing. Since Game 3 of the 2019 Division Series, Judge has made 66 playoff appearances and reached two strikes. He had 40 strikeouts, six walks, and three hits, all singles and no infield hits. His last two-strike extra-base hit in the postseason was against David Price in Game 1 of the 2018 Division Series.
What's even more confusing is that Judge isn't just a brute power hitter, he's a genius hitter. During the regular season, he posted a 1.220 OPS with runners in scoring position, leading the majors (minimum 75 at-bats). He was second in OPS at .811 with two strikes, 80 points better than his previous best.
Even great players can become ineffective during this period. Dodgers forward Mookie Betts entered Game 3 of the Division Series as a .245 postseason hitter with no hits in his last 22 games. Kansas City's Bobby Witt Jr., the likely MVP after Judge, was 0-for-10 with four strikeouts through two games.
However, there are some players who stand up. For example, Bryce Harper. And a group of dynasty Yankees like Derek Jeter performed just as well in October as they did from April through September (i.e. great), augmenting it with signature moments.
Conversely, Dave Winfield, Judge's greatest player of all time, perhaps due to his combination of size and athleticism, went 1-for-22 in the 1981 World Series loss to the Dodgers. He is best remembered as a Yankee. That eventually led to George Steinbrenner naming Winfield Mr. May. It was the opposite of Reggie Jackson's Mr. October.
However, as Jackson famously said, “Pick up a bat and you can rewrite the story.” Think about when Pete Alonso looked like he was going to have his signature moment without a hit in 2024. Then, in what might have been his last at-bat for the Mets, with one out and second base in the ninth inning of a decisive Game 3 against the Brewers, Alonso hit a three-run homer off indomitable closer Devin Williams, leading the Mets to the league championship. pushed up. division series.
So the judges can still rewrite this story. Without him, I don't see how the Yankees could reach the Canyon of Heroes.
