When Aaron Judge was tipped by a Yankees veteran to follow in the footsteps of Derek Jeter and become a great leader
In May 2017, rookie Aaron Judge was tipped by Yankees veteran CC Sabathia for his leadership abilities. The former star pitcher also drew comparisons between Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, and Aaron Judge.
As per Yahoo, CC Sabathia explained:
"[Derek] Jeter was a guy you could watch and do things the right way. Mariano [Rivera] was a guy who could speak up. Aaron [Judge] is a guy with the ability to do both."
He added by saying that it's challenging to meet someone that young who possesses those attributes.
Congrats @TheJudge44!!! Well deserved honor. https://t.co/F9TEIvO1Qn
"Congrats @TheJudge44!!! Well deserved honor." - Derek Jeter
MLB world often draws comparisons between Aaron and Derek Jeter. Judge, though, has repeatedly disregarded these parallels to Jeter.
Since his rookie season, Aaron Judge has demonstrated his baseball skills by setting staggering records with the Yankees, attaining unprecedented heights of renown and popularity.
In the 2022 MLB season, he hit his 62nd home run, breaking Roger Maris' American League single-season home run record. Additionally, he took home the American League MVP.
Aaron Judge has been named the New York Yankees captain
In December 2022, Aaron Judge was named the 16th captain in New York Yankees history.
Here's what Aaron had to say about the franchise's historic move:
“It goes without saying what an honor that is. Look back at the list of, you know, Thurman Munson, Lou Gehrig, Ron Guidry, Willie Randolph, Derek Jeter, Don Mattingly."
“That’s a pretty good list right there. Not only great baseball players, but great ambassadors of the game and great ambassadors of the New York Yankees. This is an incredible honor that I don’t take lightly."
He added:
“I’m going to continue to try to be the same leader that I’ve been in the past six years, continue to lead by example and I know there’s a couple more responsibilities with this, but I’m here to embrace every single obstacle and continue to lead this team and this city to not one, but multiple championships down the road.”
The new Yankees captain has the eye of the tiger gq.mn/Hi2EtFl
"The new Yankees captain has the eye of the tiger." - GQ Sports
Aaron is the first captain for the New York Yankees since Derek Jeter retired from MLB in 2014.