(This story originally appeared in the August 2017 edition of Yankees Magazine.)
Right when the season started, I penciled in this trip to Miami. I had a feeling that Aaron Judge was made for an event such as the Home Run Derby, and I had to see it first-hand.
Remember, at the time, Judge was coming off a big-league debut that saw him hit just four homers in 84 at-bats, but the guy is so big and so powerful that it was obvious he was going to hit. I definitely don’t consider myself some sort of genius for figuring that it might be worth checking out.
That said, it obviously paid off. I’ve been to the Home Run Derby seven times now, and it’s hard to express just how much MLB improved the event with the new rules that were introduced a few years ago (this was my first time seeing the new format in person). The four-minute rounds are dramatic. They’re fun. They are — when you’re in town to write a story about a guy who is in danger of not advancing out of the first round — kind of agonizing.
My story is about Judge’s incredible performance, but it also tries to make sense of this larger-than-life character who seems to prefer to blend into the background wherever possible. I tried to figure out how he feels about all the attention and intrigue of the first half, and how his life has colored his perspective. Judge is a great guy, extremely friendly and kind, but it’s nearly impossible to get him to talk about himself. So I tried to piece the puzzle together myself. How does he do it? He’s not saying.
In between, I tried to get in some fun anecdotes from the weekend, such as the balls off the roof, the opposite-field shots, and the general excitement in Marlins Park. Hope you enjoy.
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Source: Aaron Judge dazzled in All-Star Game, Derby | MLB.com