Like New York Yankees Hall of Famer, Derek Jeter, Aaron Judge is another Yankee who is known for his composed stance. Hands down a rare quality, Judge can maintain his composure both on-field and at the plate. However, one of the captain’s acquaintances says otherwise!
Aaron Judge paired with Yankees manager, Aaron Boone, has been able to nurture a friendly vibe in the clubhouse. Thus, the current team is far different from the traditional New York Yankees of the past. Nevertheless, even the most calm person suffers a breaking point, and so does Aaron Judge.
On June 12, Yankees bullpen arm Tommy Kahnle appeared in an interview on ‘FoulTerritoryTV’ and revealed an interesting fact about Judge. As per the Yankees bullpen arm, he has known Aaron Judge since 2014 via a mutual friend. They all were virtual friends for years and played video games together.
“2014, before anybody knew who Aaron Judge was. So we used to play a game called Destiny. It was actually when Judgy was in the minor leagues. We had a common friend in the Yankees system, so we kind of linked up, and played this game together. Then when I got traded back over to the Yankees, that’s the first time I ever actually met him, but I knew Judgy for a few years just playing video games with him,” narrated Kahnle.
When the report questioned Tommy Kahnle if the Judge had changed a bit since his minor league days, he replied how the Yankee’s caption has been the “same guy forever” except when he lost in FIFA, the discontinued football video game.
Still, Kahnle soon cleared the air and insisted that Judge is definitely not the controller thrower guy no matter how fired up he is.
Talking about Aaron Judge’s rare meltdown moment brings us to the fact that in the Major League, he faced his first career ejection during a Yankees vs. Tigers game last month.
It happened when Judge struck out on a close call by home plate umpire Ryan Blakney. The Yankees captain was super disappointed and murmured a few words at Ryan while returning to the dugout. Well, Aaron was ejected by the umpire immediately, even though his team won the game 5-3.
Meanwhile, it seems like most of the New York Yankees players are torn between Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole.
New York Yankees is at a crossroads between Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole
Last month, the Yankees‘ social media team did a fun session with the players. The team was asked who would they choose as their emergency contact. Nothing serious. It was just a lighthearted video.
While many players named their teammates, Aaron and Gerrit Cole were popular choices. In fact, Gerrit himself picked Aaron as his emergency contact and cited how the captain “has the keys to the city.’
Guess, who Aaron Judge chose? It was Anthony Rizzo.
Judge and Rizzo are close friends besides being teammates. After Rizzo was traded to the Yankees in 2021, their friendship developed quickly. One of the best examples is when Rizzo convinced Aaron to stay with the Yankees with the help of his fur babies.
In December 2022, Anthony kept sending Judge pictures of his two puppies, Kevin and Penny. Subtly, Rizzo hinted at his potential separation with Judge intolerable. Still, time flies by and now Aaron Judge is in the final year of his contract. However, only time can tell if he will be retained by the Yankees.
