SEATTLE — Aaron Boone saw the play live from his post in the third-base dugout Monday night, but some 30 minutes later, the Yankees manager sat in his office staring at the television screen, mouth agape, as the highlight replayed.
Aaron Judge’s power will force jaws to drop on plenty of occasions, but this one was courtesy of his defense.
The right fielder went back to the wall to leap and reach over it to rob Teoscar Hernandez of a home run in the eighth inning, capping off a stellar game in which he also hit two home runs of his own.
Judge’s feats at the plate draw most of the attention around the reigning AL MVP, and rightly so after hitting 62 home runs last season.
But his defensive prowess should not necessarily take a back seat.
“Look, there’s no question, he’s Gold Glove-caliber,” Boone said before Judge hit his 18th homer in the Yankees’ 10-2 blowout win over the Mariners on Tuesday night. “There’s been some years where, ’18-’19, he missed a lot of time out there. Last year he played a lot of center. So those kind of things have probably cost him one or two here or there. But I think everyone in the sport knows how special he is on the defensive side, too.”
Judge uses his 6-foot-7 frame to his advantage in being able to rob home runs, but Monday’s had a higher degree of difficulty than some of the others he has made at the wall.
He has also turned in plenty of diving catches over the years, putting his body on the line to help out his pitchers.
Still, after taking home MVP honors last year, just about the only thing missing from his trophy case — besides a World Series trophy — is a Gold Glove award.
Judge was a Gold Glove finalist in 2017 and 2018, but lost out to Mookie Betts both times.
He recorded an MLB- and career-high 21 Defensive Runs Saved (via FanGraphs) in 2019, but the two months he missed with a strained oblique that season likely cost him, as Betts won it again.
In 2021, Judge finished third among right fielders in DRS — just behind Joey Gallo, who took home the Gold Glove.
And in 2022, Judge helped the Yankees by playing more innings in center field than right, more than holding his own in both spots, but the timeshare hurt his candidacy for a Gold Glove at a single position.
This season, Judge actually has minus-one DRS each in right field and center field, though the eye test would beg to differ.
“I take pride in my defense,” Judge said. “From throwing to bases to trying to make plays at the wall or cutting balls off — people can say what they want, but I’m still gonna go out there and do what I do.”
While Boone’s son texted him after Monday’s game that Judge’s catch was the greatest he had ever seen, the manager put a disclaimer on it.
“That’s probably the best home run robbery, because he wasn’t able to really get there and camp,” Boone said. “He could gather a little bit, but he was on the move and had to get there. Then to get high over the wall and time it perfect[ly], that’s a pretty good home run [robbery]. He’s made some other great ones in big spots within the field. But just a special night.”
Judge, predictably, downplayed the catch and was not overly interested in rating how it compared to other defensive gems of his.
He actually thought his first home run of the night was more satisfying because it gave the Yankees the lead, whereas his catch came in the eighth inning with the 9-4 lead.
“I don’t know if that was the greatest catch ever,” Judge said. “I think if it was a closer game or if that ends the game it might be, but I was just trying to make a play for my guy. [Albert] Abreu was out there dealing that inning and he’s been doing real well for us. … I’m just out there trying to do my job.”
