Aaron Judge has been one of the MLB’s best home run hitters since he arrived. In 2022, he made history when he broke Roger Maris’ American League Single Season home run record en route to his first MVP award. This season, reaching the 60 home run mark would make him the third player ever to reach the mark twice in their career.
Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa are the only players in history with multiple 60-home-run seasons. Sosa reached the mark three times in his career.
In 2022, Judge played in 157 games and swatted 62 home runs. This season, Judge has 53 home runs with 12 games left to play. Judge leads MLB in home runs and is a big reason the Yankees are the top team in the AL.
Seven home runs in 12 games seems like a long shot, even for a hitter like Judge. However, he has already had multiple 12-game spans with seven or more home runs this season. He hit nine home runs in 12 games (8/12-8/25). He also has two spans of 12 games where he hit eight home runs (5/20-6/1, 5/29-6/11). He has hit exactly seven home runs in 12 games once the season (8/3-8/21).
While some of those spans of 12 games overlap, it is only a testament to Judge’s ability. Judge is currently at 9.9 at-bats per home run. In 2022, he was at 9.2. Judge recently had the longest streak of his career without a home run. Judge went 16 games without a home run from August 26 to September 12. The Yankees have not secured the bye in the Wild Card series, so manager Aaron Boone may not be able to sit Judge and give him days off before the postseason.
Ultimately, asking for seven home runs in 12 games is a monumental request. However, Aaron Judge has a track record of going on stretches where it seems like every time he comes up to bat is a home run. The Yankees will play their final six games at Yankee Stadium, which favors right-handers in terms of home runs. Judge has hit 160 of his 310 career home runs at Yankee Stadium.
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Photo Credit: Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees reacts after a grand slam against the Boston Red Sox during the seventh inning at Yankee Stadium on September 13, 2024 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)
