In the bottom of the ninth inning and his team facing defeat, Aaron Judge stepped up to the plate and fired his 60th home run of the season for the New York Yankees.
In a record-setting strike, Judge is now tied with Babe Ruth and just one behind Roger Maris, who holds the all-time American League record with 61. But as Judge went round the bases, his team were still 8-5 down.
Judge didn’t know it at the time, but he had just started to turn the game on its head. Soon after, with the bases loaded, Giancarlo Stanton belted the ball into the stands with a walk off Grand Slam to wrap up a stunning 9-8 victory at Yankee Stadium.
‘I haven’t been thinking of numbers and stats, I’ve wanted to help my team win,’ Judge said. ‘But this team has a never-say-die attitude.
‘It’s tough to say what the number means, I don’t think about the numbers. You can never imagine as a kid to be mentioned with the names (who set HR records).
‘You have a chance to play baseball at Yankee Stadium, I love every second of it. We’ve got a shot to come back here and do something special. I try to enjoy it all, soak it all in but I’ve still got a job to do.’
Aaron Judge hit a historic 60th home run of the season to help the Yankees to a stunning win
As Judge went round the bases, his Yankees team still looked set to be beaten by the Pirates
Ginacarlo Stanton then struck a walk off Grand Slam to wrap up a Yankees victory in the ninth
The combined Judge and Stanton heroics sparked wild scenes at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday
Stanton himself was thrilled to finish the job after another stroke of genius from his team-mate.
‘It had a little motor on it to make sure,’ Stanton said after, of his shot. ‘Judge sparked all of us. He’s going to put on a show for everybody here. It’s onto the next, it’s going to be fun to watch.’
As Judge went round the bases, there was a subdued vibe to his body language as his side still looked set to be beaten.
But little did he know that he had just ignited his team.
Anthony Rizzo doubled, Gleyber Torres walked and Josh Donaldson walked to load the bases and then Stanton duly made sure that the Yankees were soon celebrating properly.
He sent a huge hit over the left field wall to complete a fightback that sealed a historic night.
‘I kind of lost my mind,’ Judge said. ‘That’s a signature Giancarlo stand. I had a good front row seat for that. I think the whole team lost its mind, the stadium erupted.
‘A pretty special moment right there. That’s what this team is made of. Giancarlo is one of the biggest pieces of our offense when he gets hot – there is no telling what he is going to do.
‘He is a leader in that clubhouse. We’ve all got a couple weeks left to turn it up.’
With the bases loaded, Stanton stepped up and belted the ball into the stands for victory
Yankee Stadium went wild and the players led the jubilant scenes as Stanton went round
Yankees fans were focused on Judge through the game on Tuesday and their hero delivered
Judge’s night started quietly in his pursuit of 60, even if it ended in fireworks. Roger Maris Jr. and Kevin Maris, sons of the former player, were both on hand.
Specially marked balls were used each time Judge walked to the plate. Fans in the outfield seats stood and many in the crowd of 40,157 groaned with each foul ball.
‘I think it was a back-and-forth game and we were down and up against it. So for Judgey to roll up and get the guys going, it was just really good,’ Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. ‘Happy for G, it has been a grind for him.
‘It was one of those really magical innings. There was some magical spark that went on tonight, it was special.
‘It has been special to watch him (Judge) go to this level of player. He cares so much about his job, his role and who is on this team.
‘But to see him care about every detail on how he can get a little bit better – he talks to me a lot about making adjustments – and he has been able to do that to another level.’
Stanton (center) said that there is no limit to how many home runs Judge can get this season
Judge and the Yankees return to action on Wednesday night, back against the Pirates
Judge has now reached 60 runs in 147 games – the fastest Yankee to do it in history – and he moves level with the legendary Ruth and his achievement from 95 years ago.
The Yankees are back in action against Pittsburgh on Wednesday night and then face four games against rivals the Red Sox, all at Yankee Stadium.
Like the game itself, it was a final word from Stanton in his post-game press conference about team-mate Judge that was most tantalizing.
‘There’s no limit,’ he said of how many home runs Judge could hit this season. ‘It’s one bat, one pitch at a time.’
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