Could Yankees’ Aaron Judge ever hit 73 home runs? Teammates weigh in

NEW YORK – Colorado Rockies manager Bud Black knew what he was talking about. Black played in San Francisco in 1993 and 1994 with all-time home run leader Barry Bonds.

“I saw Barry in his prime,” Black said.

He then turned the conversation to Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who hit his 50th and 51st home runs of the season against Black’s club on Sunday as the Yankees posted a 10-3 won at Yankee Stadium.

“They probably don’t quite reach that level of performance” from Bonds, Black said, “but Ohtani and Judge are about right.”

A few minutes later, on the other side of the stadium in the Yankees clubhouse, talk about Judge and Bonds flared up again.

Bonds’ single-season home run record of 73 has stood since 2001.

Could Judge top it at some point in his career?

“If there’s anyone in the league who can do it,” right fielder Juan Soto said, “it’s going to be him.”

When asked the same question, Giancarlo Stanton gave a flat answer: “Yes.”

“I’m not going to put a limit on what Aaron Judge can do,” manager Aaron Boone said.

After Sunday’s game, Judge was on pace to hit 63 home runs — one more than the American League single-season record he set in 2022. At the time, he broke the record of 61 set by Yankees great Roger Maris in 1961.

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Judge hit No. 50 in the first inning off Rockies starting pitcher Austin Gomber and No. 51 in the seventh as part of back-to-back-to-back shots with Soto and Stanton off rookie Jeff Criswell, appearing in only his second MLB game and had never given up a home run in the majors before Sunday.

The judge shed a tear. He has crushed seven home runs in his last six games, nine in his last 10 games and 19 in his last 36 games. He also reached base in each of his last 15 games.

“One of the best players in the game,” Black said.

In 2022, Judge hit his 51st home run on August 30. This year he did that on August 25 and the Yankees still had 31 games left after Sunday.

Judge became the fifth player in MLB history to hit at least 50 home runs in three separate seasons, joining Babe Ruth, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Alex Rodriguez. He’s also vying to be the third hitter to record multiple seasons with at least 60 home runs, joining Sosa and McGwire. He would be the only player in that category who was not tied to performance-enhancing drugs.

Judge hit just six home runs in April while posting a .207 batting average. Then he changed his swing and went on a tear that hasn’t stopped.

“That tells you it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish,” Soto said. “At first everyone was worried about him. I wasn’t worried about (him), not one bit. Knowing how great he is and it’s like you say, it’s crazy to watch someone hit a home run day in and day out. It’s incredible. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone hit that many home runs so consistently. It’s great to have him behind me.”

“It’s surreal,” Stanton said. “Like I said, he does something special every day, and you almost take for granted how good he’s been, what an important piece he’s been to our offense and our team in general.”

This season, Judge hit a home run every nine at-bats. In Bonds’ historic season, he hit a homer every 6.5 at-bats. With just a month left, Judge would have to pick up the pace significantly if he wanted to break the MLB single-season record.

“Times are changing,” said Stanton, who hit 59 home runs in the Majors in his 2017 MVP season. “The game is changing. It’s such a far-reaching number. But before that it was also 60. Then 70. It is possible. At the rate he’s going now, he certainly can. It’s just a matter of bringing it together.”

“Seven-three is such a huge number,” Boone said. “I don’t know. But then again, records are there to be broken. That’s one of the great things about our sport.”

Judge’s 62 bombs in 2022 were just the seventh-highest total of all time. McGwire scored 70 in 1998 and 65 in 1999. Sosa scored 66 in 1998, 64 in 2001 and 63 in 1999.

But Judge hasn’t been a one-trick pony. He also leads MLB in OPS (1.201), RBIs (122) and on-base percentage (.465). His batting average of .333 was second in the majors behind Bobby Witt Jr. of Kansas City Royals with .347.

But resetting the AL record could be within Judge’s reach. In 2022, he finished August with 51 home runs and hit 11 in September.

When Boone flippantly pressed for a number on how many home runs Judge could hit, Boone said, “A lot.”

“I know that’s not necessarily his focus or his goal,” the manager said. “He’s trying to throw the best at bats and help us win the championship.”

The judge said he tries not to think about the number of home runs he has hit. His 308 career home runs are the most of any player through their first 964 career games in MLB history, with Philadelphia Phillies great Ryan Howard second at 274.

“I don’t think it really helps anyone if I go out there and try to hit a home run,” he said. “I got to this point by trying to be a good hitter and a good teammate. So that’s what I’m going to try to do. If I do that, we’ll look up at the end of the year and I think the numbers will be where they need to be.”

Where should the numbers be?

“We’ll see,” he said.

(Photo: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)