Yankees' Aaron Judge Did Himself No Favors vs. Team Italy

As the captain of Team USA, one wouldn't have expected this sort of performance from New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge.

The back to back AL MVP went 0-4 and was the final out recorded against Team Italy. Somehow, USA managed to allow eight runs as they fell, 8-6.

Judge started off hot in the World Baseball Classic and made a terrific throw against Mexico, but all of a sudden those traits disappeared and now Team USA is on the chopping block.

One of the biggest issues with Judge has been his lack of pulling through in the clutch, and that issue was in the spotlight once again at the end of this game.

Team USA Needs Aaron Judge to be Better

ITALY FINISHES THE UPSET!

Aaron Judge strikes out and Italy gets the W! pic.twitter.com/78Q0eTdmC1
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 11, 2026

It's still only March 11 but these are the same issues Yankees fans have seen with Judge in October. When the lights shine the brightest, for whatever reason, Judge fails to show up. On the surface this one performance doesn't seem to be that big of a deal, but it's a pattern that seemingly has no end in sight.

Judge went 0-4 against Team Italy in a game that could've signaled the end for Team USA. Now, everything will be decided in the upcoming Mexico vs. Italy showdown.

Team USA has no choice but to hope they can sneak in. An Italy win would do that for them, otherwise they need Mexico to pull out an offensive masterclass by scoring 5+ runs. Those are the only two scenarios that could give Judge an opportunity to prove himself once again.

Yankees Would Rather Have Judge Choke in the WBC

Aaron Judge was FIRED UP after his home run vs. Mexico pic.twitter.com/8Nz5lQZmDX
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) March 10, 2026

Losing in the WBC is one thing but having Judge go ice cold in the World Series is another. While it's a massive burden to let his entire country down, one could argue every Yankees fan would rather have Judge go hitless the entire WBC if it means he's out of this world come October with the team he's been on since 2016.

New York needs the best out of Judge on a more consistent basis. It's hard to find something to complain about when it comes to his game, but this is by far the most common thing that's brought up time and time again. This team would do everything to keep Judge around for the long haul, but it makes no sense why a guy who hits 50+ homers in the regular season has a career .236 batting average in the postseason.

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