New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge Joins Lou Gehrig, Mickey Mantle in Franchise History

Aaron Judge blasted another home run to open up the New York Yankees' blowout win over the Baltimore Orioles, all while keeping his batting average well above .400.
Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) hits a solo home run during the sixth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium.
Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) hits a solo home run during the sixth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

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The New York Yankees' offense exploded right off the bat against the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday, and Aaron Judge was once again in the middle of their historic performance.

Judge hit the second bomb of the Yankees' back-to-back-to-back home runs that opened the contest, sparking a five-run first inning. New York wound up winning 15-3, while Judge finished 2-for-3 with two walks and three runs.

The 33-year-old right fielder is now batting .412 with nine home runs, 29 RBIs, a 1.235 OPS and a 2.7 WAR so far in 2025.

According to New York Yankees Stats, Judge is now one of three Yankees with at least nine home runs and a batting average over .400 through the first 30 games of a season. He is the first to achieve the feat since Mickey Mantle in 1956, with Lou Gehrig's 1927 campaign rounding out the exclusive group.

Judge currently leads MLB in hits, total bases, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS and WAR. He also leads the American League in runs and RBIs.

At this point last year, Judge was batting .207 with a .754 OPS. He went on to win his second AL MVP award and guide New York back to the World Series.

Judge will look to continue his historic start to the season in Wednesday's rubber match against the Orioles. First pitch from Camden Yards is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. ET.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer covering baseball for “Fastball on SI.’’ He previously covered UCLA Athletics for On SI’s All Bruins site, and is a UCLA graduate, with his work there as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for On SI’s New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Sam lives in Boston.

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