KANSAS CITY -- Aaron Judge's remarkable season made its way to Kansas City -- attempting to crash into the Royals’ record books in the process.
Judge’s first swing of the night on Tuesday in the Yankees' 10-2 win sent a middle-middle fastball a Statcast-projected 469 feet -- the longest home run of the season for the two-time AL MVP and the longest at Kauffman Stadium this year.
The two-run moonshot landed on top of the Royals’ Hall of Fame building well beyond left field, bouncing up and hitting the signage -- the only thing stopping it from leaving the ballpark and finding its way onto the outfield concourse.
"I made sure to jump up and get to a good spot where I could really watch it,” manager Aaron Boone said. “I was under control, poised, I had to make sure I had a good view of it. That was evaporated.”
It was Judge’s seventh-longest home run of his career, and topped his season best by one foot (March 29 vs. Milwaukee) -- landing in nearly uncharted territory at The K.
"I think that one was the farthest,” catcher Austin Wells said regarding Judge’s home runs. “I’ve played some games here now, and I’ve never seen a ball come close to being up there. So that was pretty cool. I feel like when he hit that one off the bat, it was a little different.”
It was Judge’s 10th home run in the first inning this season, and the third longest in the Major Leagues this season behind only Mike Trout’s 484-foot homer and Logan O’Hoppe’s 470-foot blast.
After his seventh game this season of three or more RBIs, Judge leads the big leagues in average (.396), on-base percentage (.491), slugging (.776), OPS (1.267) hits (97) and extra-base hits (43).
“He’s playing in a different league, he needs to get called up,” Boone said.
"The most amazing part of it is I feel like he’s just playing well. I don’t feel like he’s been on fire at any point. That’s what’s amazing about it. I think he’s just out there playing well, getting his hits, doing his thing. But in a lot of ways I’m still waiting for him to catch fire. And that’s when it really gets scary.”
Judge’s Home Run Derby-esque long ball -- in front of a large crowd excited for the home debut of Royals top prospect Jac Caglianone -- set the tone for the Yankees’ 10-run outburst.
Wells followed Judge’s lead with a three-run blast into the right-field bullpen in the fourth after Jasson Domínguez (three hits) and DJ LeMahieu (two hits, two walks) started a two-out rally with a pair of singles. Then in the sixth, Wells tied a career high (first achieved on May 6) with five RBIs after a two-run double down the right-field line.
"That’s who he is, that’s what he’s capable of,” Boone said. “Up to over 40 RBIs already and has had some downturns too. He’s just been really productive, he’s really good in the bigger the spot. … Good to see him have a night like that.”
Four straight Yankees singled after that, including Cody Bellinger’s RBI knock for his 1,000th career hit, to cap a five-run frame. That was more than enough for Max Fried, who continued his bid for the AL Cy Young Award with seven innings of two-run ball, which actually raised his ERA to 1.84 -- the fifth-best mark in the big leagues.
Judge’s blast helped the Yankees (40-25) join the Tigers (44-24) as the only 40-win American League clubs, securing their sixth straight victory against Kansas City, dating back to Games 3 and 4 of New York’s ALDS victory last October.
Tempers from that postseason series -- which included a benches-clearing incident -- flared once again between Jazz Chisholm Jr. and the Royals’ Maikel Garcia on Tuesday night due to a hard slide and tag during Chisholm’s stolen-base attempt in the sixth inning, but no Yankee outside of Chisholm discussed the play in question.
Instead, they were still in awe of Judge’s monster homer -- yet the man who hit it may have been the only one to not see it land.
"I didn’t [watch it land],” Judge said. “You watch it for a second, make sure it’s going out of the park, and then you start your stroll. I try not to watch it too much.
"There’s no time. I got to start running. It’s on to the next. Once you do something like that, you can enjoy it for a second, but the moment’s over. You got to get on to the next thing. I was just happy to get the two runs.”