NEW YORK – Fans lined the streets around Yankee Stadium for hours Friday, drawn by the lure of Aaron Judge’s much-anticipated “Superman” bobblehead. The giveaway looked the part, but there’s still no substitute for the genuine article.
Judge rose to the occasion on his big night, belting his 27th home run while reaching base in his first four plate appearances. Yet he could have used the Man of Steel’s ability to leap tall buildings in a single bound -- if only for a few seconds.
Instead, Judge saw Ramón Urías’ go-ahead homer sail past his outstretched glove in the Yankees’ 5-3 loss to the Orioles. Though he and his team came up short, Judge maintained his confidence that Bombers’ June swoon (8-10) is about to turn.
“It’s moving in the right direction,” Judge said. “All good teams go through little slumps or situations where it’s not going your way. You’ve just got to keep trekking, keep moving forward.”
The Bombers’ seventh loss in eight games tilted on Urías’ eighth-inning drive, the sixth pitch thrown by Luke Weaver, who was activated from the 15-day injured list earlier on Friday after missing 17 games with a left hamstring strain.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone plans to mix and match in the closer’s role between Weaver and Devin Williams going forward.
“I don’t think [Weaver was] all that far off,” Boone said. “They just took advantage of some pitches.”
The past week has marked Judge’s most challenging of the season thus far, but he might be showing signs of wearing that figurative red and yellow ‘S’ on his chest again.
Judge entered Friday in a 3-for-27 funk, striking out 16 times with just one homer and one RBI over that span. Yet he showed promise in his final at-bat on Thursday against the Angels, roping a deep double to left-center field.
Judge carried that into Friday’s action, giving the Yankees a lead by turning around Tomoyuki Sugano’s third-inning fastball, a drive that cleared the right-center-field wall.
Boone said he thought Judge made a slight adjustment by placing his hands higher, noting, “I thought he was better at finding the timing. That’s what it is. A lot of times when guys get a little tick off, it really comes down to getting into position on time.”
Judge downplayed the effect, saying, “I’m making adjustments every day. I had a good game, so he probably noticed a little change, but I’ve been making adjustments since March.”
Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Jasson Domínguez also drove in runs for the Yankees as Max Fried logged a quality start that almost wasn’t. Fried said he was out of sync mechanically in the first inning, hitting two batters and allowing a pair of runs, then settled in to pitch scoreless ball until the sixth.
“I get into trouble when my left leg gets a little too swingy or just out of control,” Fried said. “I just wanted to be a little bit in a tighter coil, have a little bit less movement. It allowed me to be more on time and execute my pitches.”
With two men on, one out and Coby Mayo having knocked in the tying run on a soft single in the sixth, Boone appeared ready to lift Fried, who convinced the manager to keep him in.
“I was able to make eye contact with him and he didn’t signal,” Fried said. “When he came to the mound, I told him, ‘I’m confident I can get these guys.’ And he’s like, ‘OK.’”
That came as a surprise to Fernando Cruz, who’d already entered through the bullpen gates and was waved back by Boone and the Bombers’ infielders. Fried recorded the next two outs on a flyout and groundout, avoiding further damage.
It marked just the third time in 16 starts as a Yankee that Fried allowed three runs or more.
“I just wish I was a little bit sharper at the beginning,” Fried said.
Especially considering that to the Orioles and their fans, Judge has long resembled a descendant of Krypton – no cape or secret identity required. Friday’s homer was Judge’s 48th in 111 career games against Baltimore, the most by any player against any team since Judge’s Major League debut in 2016.
“They’re going to come after you,” Judge said. “It’s about being ready. They don’t like walking guys, so it’s really trying to lock it in and try to make something happen there, especially with a tight game.”
As for the bobbleheads? They were a hot item, distributed to the first 18,000 guests through the Stadium’s gates, but even the man of honor said he had yet to receive one.
“I haven’t seen it. I didn’t get one down here,” Judge said, with a grin. “I’ve got to make a phone call.”