He's been put in a statistical conversation with Babe Ruth and earned a personality comparison to Derek Jeter. In the Yankee universe, that's some pretty heady company.
It's been quite a few days for Aaron Judge.
With two more home runs in Tuesday night's win over Toronto, the towering Yankee outfielder didn't just move into the major league lead; he joined Ruth (and Alex Rodriguez) as the only Yankees to hit 12 home runs in the team's first 25 games. The power surge that electrified Judge's ridiculous month of April, the one that left his manager Joe Girardi wondering late Sunday, "What's he going to do next?" and had the manager comparing Judge's calm, contagious leadership style to that of the former Yankee captain, wasted little time providing an answer.
With a solo shot in the third inning Tuesday and an even more impressive three-run shot in the seventh, a 10-pitch at-bat full of tenacity, fight and patience, Judge continues to provide a daily dose of baseball must-see TV.
"Just trying to get a pitch I could handle," Judge told reporters about the second blast. "Finally I was able to get the barrel on one."
The strapping young star who is having no trouble connecting with the baseball is just as quickly connecting with our baseball hearts. At 6-foot-7 and somewhere around 275 pounds, with a jersey No. 99 to echo the defensive end it appears he could be, Judge is proving to be so much more than a physically intimidating presence, emerging from the new Yankee landscape as the next big franchise star.
Asking for another Core Four has always seemed unfair to ensuing Yankee generations _ could there ever be another intersection like the one we saw with Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte and Jorge Posada? _ but if these new Baby Bombers are ever really going to take hold, it will be Judge and his affable gap-toothed smile and laid-back friendly personality out in front, leading the way for teammates Gary Sanchez and Greg Bird.
That's why Girardi wasn't shy about evoking memories of Jeter on Monday, a comparison no right-minded Yankee observer could, or should, ever make lightly.
"He's a little bit like Derek to me," Girardi told reporters. "He's got a smile all the time. He loves to play the game. You always think that he is going to do the right thing on the field and off the field. When you look at him, he's got a presence about him. He plays the game to win all the time, and that's the most important thing. It is not about what you did that day. And I understand that's a big comparison, but I remember Derek when he was young. He grew into that leadership role, but that was Derek."
Jeter will be at Yankee Stadium on May 14 for his Monument Park dedication, and in an interview with the YES Network, recalled his impressions of a younger Judge, back when the former first-round pick was still introducing himself to veteran teammates in the locker room.
"Aaron was always listening," Jeter said. "I'm happy to see that he's having success. And you want him to continue to have success, because the more success you have, the higher the expectations are. The good thing about him is you can tell from his demeanor and his attitude that he wants to improve, he wants to be better and he handles himself the right way _ not only on the field, but off the field _ so I'm a fan of his."
Who isn't? Who couldn't look at the series of YES Network tweets of Judge and much-smaller teammate Ronald Torreyes having fun with a jersey swap, Judge willing to cram his biceps into Torreyes' tiny No. 74, Torreyes willing to don Judge's pinstriped 99 like a dress?
The Yankees are on a roll, riding their wave of fun into first place in the American League East.
"(It) came down to my knees," Torreyes laughed afterwards.
"We saw a sign out there that said, 'No borrowing uniforms' at the club," Judge explained, "so we switched jerseys and did a little thing with that. His jersey was really small. I had to squeeze into it."
The baseball world is returning the favor, wrapping Judge in a blanket of early-season adoration. Las Vegas oddsmaker Bovada has moved him into third place among favorites to win the AL MVP, and video clips of Judge's mammoth batting practice shots (including the one that shattered a network flat-screen TV) are taking over the internet. There will be plenty of time to tap the brakes, when the inevitable catch-up by major league pitchers gives Judge fewer and fewer strikes to hit.
But right now, as he goes to the plate Wednesday night with 83 at-bats at his back, a .313 average and 25 RBIs to go with the 12 homers, he is a 25-year-old package of stardom worth the price of admission.
There was teammate Dellin Betances calling him "a beast." Here's veteran Brett Gardner warning the rest of baseball they've been "put on notice."
Nothing happens small in New York. Thor might be on the Mets, and Noah Syndergaard may have believed it was his team's turn to own this city, but while Syndergaard leads the Mets' idle army of injured and infirmed, it's Aaron Judge dropping the hammer now.
Enjoy it while it lasts.
