NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge turned to the Bleacher Creatures during their first-inning Roll Call at the New York Yankees' home opener Friday, bent a knee and flexed with both arms in honor of Brett Gardner.
“Still hoping he gets a chance to come back here and share his knowledge with the boys a little bit,” Judge said after his go-ahead, two-run homer in the first inning started the Yankees to an 8-2 win over the Miami Marlins. “He was a big part of
this team, his long tenure here as a Yankee, so I always like paying him a little credit. He's tuned into the game and watching.”
Gardner spent his entire big league career with the Yankees from 2008-21, and Judge made his major league debut with New York in 2016. Judge started flexing for Roll Call when playing center field, Gardner's old position. Judge roomed with Gardner in 2017.
“He was a leader. He was a professional. He was a prankster. He was everything that you look for in a guy to lead the team,” Judge said, speaking slowly and choosing his words carefully. “He took me in at a young age when I first got here and he treated me just like everybody else and showed me respect. He taught me a lot of things. It kind of teaches you how to lead a clubhouse. He had a big influence on me not only on the field but inside this clubhouse, just the way he played the game and the way he held everybody to a standard. Very few guys are made like Brett Gardner.”
Gardner has been in the Yankees' thoughts even more since March 2024, when his youngest son died at age 14 during a family vacation in Costa Rica. Authorities determined carbon monoxide poisoning was the cause of death.
Judge, the team captain, wanted the Yankees to arrive in style after opening 5-1 on their West Coast trip.
“That's Cap, again, setting the tone,” said Ben Rice, who homered and drove in three runs. “Sent us a text late last night saying: `Hey, suits tomorrow.' So everybody was fired up and we were happy to continue that momentum out on the field.”
Trent Grisham reached leading off with the first of 11 walks by Marlins pitchers and Judge drove a slider into the left-field seats against Eury Pérez for a 2-1 lead.
Judge, who had three RBIs, hit a record 20 first-inning home runs last year, when he finished with 53. Three of Judge’s five hits this season have been home runs.
Coming off his third AL MVP award and first batting title, Judge is off to a slow start with a .185 average.
He gave his teammates a scare in the second inning when he was hit below the right wrist by a 98.9 mph fastball from Pérez, one pitch after Grisham's bases-loaded walk.
“I’ve broken my wrist like that, so that’s always the main concern,” Judge said.
Judge missed 45 games after he was hit by a pitch from Kansas City’s Jakob Junis on July 26, 2018.
“Felt like he was probably OK but I tend to jump up a little quicker when it’s to him," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb
