It took Aaron Judge about two seconds to shake off the offseason rust.
In what was his 2026 spring training debut for the New York Yankees, Judge hit a two-run home run to center field in the third inning against the Detroit Tigers on Saturday afternoon. The next inning? He hit a two-run homer inside the left field foul pole.
Judge finished the day 2-of-3 before being deliberately removed from the game in the fifth inning.
Of course, Judge, a five-time Silver Slugger, is coming off a 2025 campaign that saw the superstar outfielder win a second consecutive American League MVP Award and third in four seasons. In the regular season, he totaled 53 home runs, 114 RBIs, a 215 OPS+ and 9.7 wins above replacement, while posting a .331/.457/.688 slash line and being intentionally walked 36 times.
Judge led the AL in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, runs scored (137), walks (124), OPS+, wins above replacement and intentional walks, among other offensive categories. He then totaled one home run and seven RBIs across New York’s seven postseason games, while posting a .500/.581/.692 slash line.
As for where Judge — who has spent his entire nine-plus-year career in New York (2016-25) — stands in Yankees’ lore, he’s third in franchise history with a .615 slugging percentage, fourth with 368 home runs and a .413 on-base percentage and sixth with 62.3 wins above replacement.
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