While the Yankees sputtered to a 13-7 loss in Game 2 of the American League Divisional Series against the Toronto Blue Jays, which once again shifted their season back to the brink, Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal began pondering aloud on-air about Aaron Judge.
“Aaron Judge turns 34 next April. How many more chances are the Yankees going to get him at his peak?” he asked. “He’s not going to continue like this forever. And here they are again in serious trouble in the postseason.”
The only person outside of general manager Brian Cashman who can truly rectify the situation, though, is Judge.
On the surface, his numbers this postseason look fine. He’s batting .444 with a 1.024 OPS in five games.
But how many of those numbers are empty?
He has just one extra-base hit and two RBI in 21 plate appearances during these playoffs — and one of those RBI should not even count because Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran dropped his fly ball to score a run during Game 2 of the AL Wild Card Series last week in the Bronx.
As has been the case through most of his postseason career, he has been unable to come through in big situations. He went 0-for-4 in Game 3 of the winner-take-all Wild Card Series while the Yankees were paced by the brilliance of rookie pitcher Cam Schlittler in his postseason debut.
In what was a 2-0 Blue Jays lead in the top of the sixth inning in Game 1 of the ALDS on Saturday, Judge came up with the bases loaded and none out. He struck out, waving badly at a Kevin Gausman offspeed pitch that dived low and away out of the zone. The Yankees mustered just one run in that inning, and the Blue Jays responded by scoring four apiece in the seventh and eighth innings to put it away.
His bloop single with the bases loaded in the top of the seventh in Game 2 on Sunday came with things already out of reach and Toronto leading 12-2.
There are obviously other aspects that have gone terribly wrong in this ALDS. Luis Gil lasted just 2.2 innings in Game 1. Max Fried, who owns the record for the richest contract signed by a lefty at $218 million, has an ERA over nine this season at Rogers Centre after he lasted just 3.2 innings and allowed seven runs in Game 2.
But Judge is a generational superstar who is not going to receive an abundance of opportunities in game-changing situations. Opposing teams know how to pitch him in big moments, and the clear failure to adjust has been an issue that has spanned nearly a decade now.
In 238 career postseason at-bats (63 games), he’s batting .238 with a .787 OPS. He batted .184 during the Yankees’ run to the World Series last year. He batted .139 in 2022 when they made the ALCS. He batted .133 in 2020 when New York was bounced from the ALDS by the Tampa Bay Rays.
Of course, there are moving parts to this. The supporting staff has been suspect, surely. But the preeminent slugger of this generation, perhaps even all-time, has to do more than a few singles and a knock or two when October games are out of reach.
There is still time to rectify it all, but as Rosenthal prefaced, how much of it is left?
For more on Aaron Judge and the Yankees, visit AMNY.com
