The Loop
Aaron Judge crafts apt metaphor for AL East dominance, smacks BP bomb into The Trop banners
Aaron Judge has more pop than an RC Cola factory. This we know. This we've seen time and time again as he's smashed rookie home run records, conquered the Home Run Derby, and miss-hit countless homers to opposite field. In other words, it takes one hell of a Judge dinger to move the needle these days (get your mind out the gutter, sickos), but on Wednesday night, he delivered exactly that in BP at The Trop, turning on a pitch and giving it a ride all the way into the Rays' 2008 AL East Championship banner in left. HOW DARE YOU DISRESPECT THE HOME OF BASEBALL LIKE THAT, AARON.
Honestly, given both the state of Judge and The Trop, we're surprised (and thankful) the whole structure didn't come crumbling down.
Despite an injury curtailed 2019, Judge is getting healthy at just the right time for the Yankees, who are currently vying for the best overall record in baseball, sitting 2.5 back of the Astros with three to play. Crunch those numbers and you'll see it's probably not going to happen, making the Yankees locks to face the similarly big-hitting Twins in the ALDS next week. With Yankees pitching susceptible to the long ball—they've conceded 244 this season, on par with the Detroit Tigers—plus the whole Minneapolis-in-October thing, it could be a tricky series for the championship-or-bust pinstripes to kick off the 2019 postseason.
But even if 99 and co. crash and burn before getting revenge on the Astros, at least they'll head into the offseason with this incredible show of divisional disrespect in their back pocket. If there's a more fitting metaphor for how the Yankees have beat up on the Devil Rays over the years, you're gonna have to send us the link.