New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge has plenty of reasons to party. Judge not only leads the league in home runs, having hit 60 of them, but he is also in line to win the first Triple Crown since Detroit Tigers star Miguel Cabrera in 2012.
Judge's Yankees are in Toronto for a midweek showdown series against the Jays, which is the last meeting of the teams this season. Going into last night's game, the Yankees needed only to win to clinch the AL East for the first time since 2019.
Their hopes were spoiled in the first game on Monday. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a walk-off single in extra innings to propel his team to victory. Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman also stymied the Bombers with seven strikeouts in 6.1 innings pitched.
Aaron Judge and the Yankees rolled over the Jays 5-2 on Tuesday night to secure the title. With the party already getting going in the visitors locker room, Judge could be seen running up behind his teammates.
"Don't party without me" is what Judge was heard saying as he rushed towards the locker room. He can rest assured that his teammates were likely waiting for him to commence the festivities.
Aaron Judge central to Yankees postseason success
Judge currently has 128 RBIs and a batting average of .314, both of which lead the league. After four walks last night over the Toronto Blue Jays, Judge leads the league in that category, too.
His excellent numbers come even after a week-long slide in which the star has batted around the .270 mark. His 60 home runs tied him with Yankee legend Babe Ruth, who reached the milestone in 1927.
Now, Aaron Judge is setting his sights on the all-time single season home run record. The record of 61 home runs was set by another Yankee, Roger Maris, in 1961.
As for the Yankees, manager Aaron Boone put it best when he described them as "the best team in the best division this year." Now, the challenge for Boone and his team will be translating that success to the postseason theatre. The Yankees have not won a World Series since 2009.