New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

Yankees' Aaron Judge comments on resurgence after bad slump

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 5/16/24

New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge seemingly put memories of his earlier slump to bed, for good, when he went 4-for-4 with a home run, three doubles and two RBI in Wednesday's 4-0 victory at the Minnesota Twins.

Judge indicated after the win he's still getting "locked in" this spring.

"We’re getting there," Judge said about his ongoing surge, according to Greg Joyce of the New York Post and Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. "We’re getting there. Not there yet. Hopefully, we get there when we’re talking in November."

Judge's offensive woes in April and early May repeatedly generated headlines despite the Yankees' hot start to the 2024 season. As Miller noted, the captain entered April 27 batting just .178 on the season.

Heading into the Thursday afternoon series finale in Minnesota, Judge was responsible for a .255 average. Across the campaign's first 44 games, he has hit 11 homers with 29 RBI and a .926 OPS.

"So much for that tough start," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said about the 2022 American League Most Valuable Player. "Look, he’s a great player obviously and obviously starting to see the ball really well. Hitting’s hard, even for great ones. Even the guys that have the best of years and win MVPs, there’s still peaks and valleys."

Judge went viral on Wednesday thanks to his 467-foot bomb in the first inning at Target Field. He later reflected on whether he impresses even himself with such towering blasts:

467 ft for The Judge. pic.twitter.com/0KMy1E3gsx
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) May 15, 2024

"It’s happened so fast, man, I don’t even know what’s going through my head," Judge acknowledged. "I’m just locked in trying to stay on a good swing on a good pitch. ...You get it on the barrel like that and when you’re locked in and timed up, you don’t even feel it."

As for the 29-15 Yankees, they ended Wednesday atop the division standings and with the best record in all of the AL. Judge previously insisted he was simply "missing" pitches that typically wouldn't elude him and suggested on Wednesday he didn't need to make any major adjustments to reclaim his form ahead of the Memorial Day holiday.

"It’s how it’s been all year, I’m just making contact," Judge explained. "That’s the only difference."

As of Thursday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Yankees third among the betting favorites at +650 odds to win the World Series. Don't be surprised if the Bronx Bombers climb atop such lists by June 1 should Judge remain hot over the next couple of weeks.

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