WATCH: Yankees star Aaron Judge honored by Fresno State ahead of his jersey retirment ceremony 

Aaron Judge might be one of the biggest assets in the world of baseball right now. But like everyone else, even he had humble beginnings while playing college baseball for the Fresno State Bulldogs. The college honoured him with a special ceremony before retiring his jersey number.

Judge played for Fresno State University for three seasons, from 2011 to 2013. He was the team's first player to win the College Home Run Derby and led them to two conference championships over that span. Judge owned a .345 average with 18 home runs and 109 RBIs in 169 games as a Bulldog.

"Those three years I spent at Fresno State to mature as a player on the field -- [and] as an individual and a young man off the field -- shaped and prepared me for this next jump inyo [playing] pro baseball for the New York Yankees," Judge said on the announcement of his jersey retirement news.

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Currently in the middle of their football season, the University held a special ceremony before a game at the Valley Children's Stadium. Along with Judge, former coach Mike Batesole was also present. Both of their jersey numbers will be hanged up in the rafters at the base stadium the following afternoon. Their numbers were the 12th and 13th to be retired by Fresno State.

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Aaron Judge will hope for a better 2024 season with the Yankees

Stepping onto the role of team captain, Aaron Judge's first season was not what we had expected. The Yankees didn't qualify for the postseason for the first time since 2016 and almost had a losing record with just 82 wins.

Significant changes have been hinted to take place in the Bronx as the management looks to turn things around. They have also taken help from an outsider statistics consultancy firm that is in process of reviewing their analytics department.

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