All rise for Aaron Judge! The New York Yankees superstar slugger capped off his historic 2022 season by blasting his 62nd home run in his team's game against the Texas Rangers. Judge's solo shot to left field placed him at the top of the history charts for the most home runs by an American League player in a single season.
Pandemonium ensued, not only in Globe Life Park, but also on Twitter following the momentous event. Fans and players alike were pumped up about Judge's historic accomplishment.
Aaron Judge hit the historic home run off in the second game of the double-header against the Rangers at Globe Life Field. The blast was of the leadoff variant off Rangers pitcher Jesus Tinoco. The Yankees would eventually lose the game 3-2, but that didn't take away from the gravity of the moment.
Judge has primarily struggled since hitting 60 for the year. He was batting .231 with a home run, 15 strikeouts, and 18 walks. The saving grace is that he has reached base in his last 33 consecutive games. With the pressure of breaking the record now off, it will be interesting to see if Aaron Judge will become more relaxed and become a one-man demolition crew come postseason time.
Aaron Judge's first home run of the 2022 season
No one in their right state of mind could have predicted that Aaron Judge would break the single-season record for the American League during the start of the season.
On April 13, Judge kicked off what would have been a historic campaign when he hit a 413-foot solo shot to left field against the Toronto Blue Jays. The home run would go in vain as the Yankees lost to the Blue Jays 6-4.
The superstar slugger would finish the month with six home runs. As it stands, Judge is batting .311/.425/1.111 with 62 home runs and 131 RBIs, truly an MVP-caliber season for an MVP-caliber player.