Led by Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider, the frequency of intentionally walking Aaron Judge has skyrocketed over the past ten days. Here’s how it used to go: Juan Soto gets on base, Aaron Judge homers—bam, two runs for the Yanks.
However, that script flipped once teams, starting with the Blue Jays, began walking Judge regularly. In that series alone, Judge was walked four times in two games, including three times in one game. Yet, now, with Yankees’ cleanup star Giancarlo Stanton back in the lineup, the dynamics of walking Judge might change significantly. A hot and in-form Giancarlo Stanton is like having a second Aaron Judge in the lineup, only now with two batters on base and the power to obliterate a baseball.
All season, the Yankees have struggled to lock down two key spots: leadoff and cleanup. While the leadoff spot remains a bit of a revolving door, a new face has stepped up to the plate at cleanup: Austin Wells. In his 106 plate appearances at that spot, he’s batting a solid .319 with a .371 OBP, 22 RBIs, and 5 homers. Impressive numbers, no doubt. But he’s no Giancarlo Stanton.
With Alex Verdugo in scoring position, Giancarlo Stanton opened the Yankees’ account with a sac fly in a rubber game against the Rangers. Juan Soto followed that up with a solo homer, putting the Yanks up 2-0. With DJ LeMahieu on base and Juan Soto just grounding into a double play, the Rangers made a bold choice: they intentionally walked Aaron Judge and brought in Jose Leclerc to replace starter Andrew Heaney.
What happened next was the perfect response to all those intentional walks. On a 2-2 count, Big G dropped to one knee and absolutely demolished the baseball into the left-field stands. The YES Network box summed it up best: “That’s a bullet to left field.”
Giancarlo Stanton’s blast was just the beginning. Juan Soto followed with his second home run of the night (30th of the season), and Aaron Judge smashed his 42nd. However, it wasn’t smooth sailing from there, as the Yankees’ bullpen nearly imploded, but Clay Holmes just managed to hang on to the lead, securing the save in the top of the ninth as the Yanks squeaked out an 8-7 victory.
After the game, Giancarlo Stanton acknowledged the crucial role of the cleanup spot, especially with Soto and Judge consistently getting on base. He pointed out that if the cleanup spot clicks, opposing teams will have to think twice—maybe even a hundred times—before deciding to intentionally walk Judge.
“It’s part of the game. He’s an all-time talent, so if that happens, I got to do what happened today in order for it not to happen.”
Furthermore, Stanton went on to talk about Judge’s greatness, and how the MLB world is witnessing history.
“It’s incredible. He does something special every night, every day, every night and being able to see most of his career so far, besides one year, it’s been fun to watch the evolution. He’s got more in store.”
A lot depends on how the Yankees handle their cleanup spot. Lineup indications from Boone suggest Stanton will bat cleanup against lefties, while Wells will take on righties. If either—or both—of them can consistently drive in Soto and Judge, we could see a significant drop in intentional walks against Judge.
However, the big question is: Can Stanton keep up this form and stay injury-free for the rest of 2024? Share your thoughts below!
