Aaron Judge Climbs Mount Rushmore: Tying Joe DiMaggio In the Shadow Of History
Well, folks, Aaron Judge just can’t seem to stop collecting Yankees legends like baseball cards. The big man did what he does best Thursday night – launch baseballs into orbit while making history look effortless. With President Donald Trump watching from the stands and the weight of 9/11 remembrance hanging over Yankee Stadium, the slugger delivered a performance that would make even the “Yankee Clipper” himself tip his cap.
Judge’s Historic Night Against Detroit
Two days. That’s all it took for Judge to go from tying Yogi Berra to matching Joe DiMaggio’s franchise home run total of 361. If you blinked during the Yankees’ 9-3 demolition of the Detroit Tigers, you missed Judge turn back the clock and remind everyone why he’s the face of baseball’s most storied franchise.
The first blast came in the opening frame – a 413-foot moonshot off Tyler Holton that had “vintage Judge” written all over it. But here’s the kicker: it was his 18th first-inning homer this season, tying a major league record he set just last year. Because apparently, he doesn’t believe in easing into games like the rest of us ease into Monday mornings.
When Lightning Strikes Twice
If you thought Judge was done after one swing, you clearly haven’t been paying attention to his 2025 campaign. Two innings later, facing Sawyer Gipson-Long (who probably wishes he could change his name right about now), Judge unleashed a 434-foot rocket with an exit velocity of 114.9 mph.
That’s the kind of number that makes physics teachers weep with joy and opposing pitchers question their life choices. The ball traveled so far that it probably needed its own boarding pass.
The Numbers Game: Judge vs. Yankees Royalty
Let’s put this in perspective – Judge now sits tied with DiMaggio at 361 career homers, and he’s only 32 years old. He reached this milestone in his 1,129th regular-season game, which sounds impressive until you realize he’s been terrorizing pitchers at a pace that would make Babe Ruth do a double-take.
Speaking of the Babe, Judge still has some serious climbing to do. Ruth’s 659 homers sit atop the Yankees’ Mount Rushmore, followed by Mickey Mantle’s 536 and Lou Gehrig’s 493. But at this rate, he might need a bigger trophy case.
The man is batting .322, leading the majors, while casually rewriting the record books. It was his 45th career multi-homer game, putting him behind only Ruth (68) and Mantle (46) in franchise history. Not bad company for a kid from California who grew up dreaming of pinstripes.
Judge’s Remarkable Consistency
Here’s what separates Judge from mere mortals: consistency wrapped in excellence. This marked his fourth season reaching 45 home runs, tying him with “Iron Horse” Lou Gehrig for second-most in Yankees history. Only Ruth, with nine such seasons, sits ahead of them.
And those two unfortunate pitchers who served up the long balls? They’re now members of an exclusive club nobody wants to join – the 272nd and 273rd hurlers to surrender a Judge bomb. At this point, there might be easier ways to make a living than throwing fastballs to a man who treats them like batting practice meatballs.
Manager Aaron Boone summed it up perfectly, calling it “a privilege having a front-row seat” to watch the star player chase down Yankees immortals. After all, when you’re watching someone potentially rewrite the record books while honoring the memory of September 11th, you’re witnessing something special.
Judge himself kept it classy, acknowledging the significance of the day: “It’s just an important day for all of us to come together, so it’s just kind of a surreal moment, surreal day.” Next up? Gehrig at 493 home runs. And if Thursday night taught us anything, it’s that he isn’t slowing down anytime soon.
