Aaron Judge is invaluable to the Yankees. But what if I told you even more so than you might realize.
We’re observing a league trend where right-handed batters are facing unprecedented challenges against left-handed pitching. However, Aaron Judge stands out as an exception, excelling against left-handed pitchers and providing the Yankees with a significant advantage in this challenging area.
Judge has had 29 plate appearances against left-handed pitchers this season (all statistics are as of the weekend), which may not be extensive, yet he’s capitalized on them with substantial impact. He’s hit five home runs, three doubles, and drawn seven walks, achieving a remarkable .500/.621/1.273 slash line, resulting in an outstanding 1.893 OPS.
This performance boosted Judge’s career OPS against left-handed pitchers to 1.052, placing him seventh in history (with a minimum of 1,000 plate appearances against lefties). He’s only behind elite names in the sport: Jimmie Foxx, Babe Ruth, Frank Thomas, Hank Greenberg, Joe DiMaggio, and Manny Ramírez.
