- #AARON JUDGE HOME RUN PACE UPGRADE#
- #AARON JUDGE HOME RUN PACE PLUS#
- #AARON JUDGE HOME RUN PACE SERIES#
- #AARON JUDGE HOME RUN PACE CRACK#
Ruth's race to 60 was a little different, as he hit nine home runs in each of June, July and August, before finishing with a flourish - 17 in 28 games in September and October, including seven over his final nine games (including a homerless game in the season finale). Maris' biggest hot streak was a stretch from May 28 to June 22, when he hit 19 homers in 29 contests. Maris was a model of consistency after that, however, with at least 10 home runs in each of the final five months. Not only did Maris hit 39 home runs in 1960, the year before he hit 61, he also started slow in his recorded-breaking campaign, with just one homer in 15 games in April. It's interesting how Judge's season tracks with Maris'. He then responded with another barrage of power in September to make history and join Ruth and Maris in the American League's 60-homer club. 21 dropped his projected total to 58.5 (with a straight-up pace of 61.1). Judge did slow down a little in August, and a nine-game homerless streak through Aug. His projected total was now up to 62.0, and his straight-up pace was a ridiculous 66.7 (and that number would peak Aug.
#AARON JUDGE HOME RUN PACE CRACK#
Then came July - or, more specifically, a hot streak that started just before the All-Star break and saw Judge crack 12 home runs in 14 games through July 30. Judge had 62 in his sights, but the debate over the best hitter of 2022 was on.
#AARON JUDGE HOME RUN PACE PLUS#
418 in June, and while he trailed Judge by six home runs, Alvarez had a much higher weighted runs created plus (wRC+), hitting.
This was starting to get interesting, but you might remember that Yordan Alvarez hit. Nobody was talking 62, although Judge's 18 home runs now topped the majors.Īfter belting 11 more home runs in June, Judge's projection had climbed to 54.2 (with a straight-up pace of 61.0). But he homered just once more the rest of the month, dropping his projection to 50.9. Judge first reached a season pace of 50 on May 13 after homering against the Chicago White Sox but went back and forth between 49 and 50 for 10 days, until homering twice on May 23 in a loss to the Baltimore Orioles, bumping his projected total to 52.6. Impressive, but he was hardly the talk of baseball yet, especially since teammate Anthony Rizzo led the majors with nine home runs in April. After finishing the abbreviated April schedule with six home runs in 20 games, Judge's projected total had climbed to 47.9. That would equal his lowest projected total. Judge began the season with a projected total of 40.9 home runs - which dipped to 39.5 after he went homerless in his first five games. My colleague Bradford Doolittle set up a day-by-day spreadsheet for Judge, creating estimated levels of playing time and home run percentage to compute a projected end-of-season home run total (differing from just a straight-up season pace). It took some time before everyone realized this could be a special season. Judge also didn't come roaring out of the gate: He hit one home run in his first 13 games.
Remaining healthy and playing 148 games in 2021, he hit 39 home runs, hardly a harbinger for a historic season when you consider Brandon Lowe and Mitch Haniger also hit 39. While remaining an enormously productive hitter in the ensuing seasons, after averaging a home run every 10.42 at-bats in 2017, Judge averaged one every 14.14 at-bats from 2018 to 2021.
While Judge's season hasn't exactly come out of nowhere - after all, he did hit a then-rookie-record 52 home runs in 2017 - this run to 62 wasn't exactly anticipated, either. So how did he do it? Let's break down Judge's road to 62. Now, Judge joins Ruth and Maris as the only AL players to hit 60 or more home runs in a season. Judge also broke Maris' famed franchise record, previously held by Babe Ruth, who hit 60 in 1927.
#AARON JUDGE HOME RUN PACE SERIES#
His 62nd home run - which came off Texas Rangers righty Jesus Tinoco on Tuesday in the Yankees' final series of the regular season - moved him past Maris, who held the previous Junior Circuit record with 61 home runs in 1961. Move over, Roger Maris: New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge has hit his 62nd home run of the 2022 MLB season, setting the single-season record for the American League. The road to 62: How Aaron Judge made home run history in 2022
#AARON JUDGE HOME RUN PACE UPGRADE#
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