New York Yankees star Anthony Rizzo opens up about Aaron Judge's harmonious conjugal life spurring on-field dominance
Aaron Judge is one of the best MLB players of recent times. Several assumptions were made that Judge was only a home run hitter when he broke the rookie record for home runs in 2017 with 52. It was also assumed that Judge's future success in the sport was only dependent on his ability to throw balls over the fence, despite the fact that his underlying metrics said otherwise.
However, when Aaron Judge showed off his incredible bat skills against the Orioles during a series opening, the Yankees were down to their final two outs and behind by one run. That's when everybody believed that he is the 'Best MLB player in the world'.
In an interview, Yankee's first baseman Anthony Rizzo, about Rodgers, said:
"It’s a comfort to him knowing that all of his hard work has paid off financially. He gets to really lock in here in New York. He decides to make a home somewhere with [his wife] Sam. All the comfort off the field, it virtually leads you to be comfortable on the field also"
Given that Judge has been chosen as the newest Yankee captain, there seems to be a greater sense of duty on his shoulders to control his teammates, which makes Judge's newly carefree attitude all the more intriguing. Still, it's exciting to see Judge relaxing even after getting a new responsibility.
Aaron Judge's records
When Aaron Judge joined Ted Williams to become just the second rookie in MLB history to produce at least 100 RBIs, 100 runs, and 100 walks in his first full season, it became clear that Judge has a multi-faceted talent.
He was the only player in baseball that year with at least 40 home runs and nine steals. The fact that he stole a career-high 16 bases was overlooked in last year's epic 62-homer season.
Simply calling him a "home run hitter" is misleading and incomplete. He now has a strong claim to becoming the best player of his generation. Aaron Judge said:
"Even growing up as a kid, it was about being a complete player. I never wanted to be just a hitter, I never wanted to be just a defensive guy. I wanted to be well-rounded and help out any way I could."
As of Tuesday, Judge was tied for ninth in runs scored (556), first in home runs (229), fourth in walks (488), fourth in on-base percentage (.398), second in slugging (.593), and second in OPS (.992).
If it isn't already evident, Judge is both a hitter and a slugger and throughout his career, his defensive rating has been above average.