BOSTON — Roger Maris’ 61 homers might not be the only history Aaron Judge ends up chasing down the stretch.
Now, the American League Triple Crown is within reach.
He’s clearly already a lock to finish the regular season with the most home runs (57) and RBIs (123).
And now, thanks to his latest torrid stretch at the plate — which has included getting on base at a dizzying pace — Judge is also making a run at the AL batting title.
Judge, having jumped from .294 on Sept. 1 to .310 after going 1-for-4 in the Yankees’ 5-3 win over the Red Sox on Wednesday, has moved into a tie for third in the AL in batting average, behind Minnesota’s Luis Arraez (.320), Boston’s Xander Bogaerts (.317) and tied with Chicago’s Jose Abreu (.310).
Asked after another three-hit night against the Red Sox on Tuesday night at Fenway Park about what the Triple Crown means, Judge said, “Some great guys have done it. Thinking back to [Miguel] Cabrera who did it last, I believe, it’s pretty special. But I think I’m a long way away from that, so we don’t need to talk about that.”
Aaron Judge hits his 57th home run of the season against the Red Sox on Tuesday. Charles Wenzelberg/New York PostToo late.
Judge would indeed be the first player since Cabrera to accomplish the feat.
The slugger pulled it off a decade ago in 2012 with the Tigers, when he finished hitting .330 with 44 homers and 139 RBIs.
The last player to do it before Cabrera was Carl Yastrzemski in 1967 with the Red Sox and the only Yankees to ever win the Triple Crown are Mickey Mantle in 1956 and Lou Gehrig in 1934.
“I’m not gonna put anything past what he’s doing,’’ Aaron Boone said Wednesday. “I know he’s a good bit behind [Arraez and Bogaerts], which makes it challenging.”
And Boone isn’t concerned about the talk of a Triple Crown impacting Judge, just as he hasn’t been when it comes to home runs.
“I guess it’s the part of it I take for granted,’’ Boone said. “I’ve answered questions since the start of the season that he’s built for this. I’m not worrying about anything weakening what he’s doing. He’s got perfect focus, with being ready to play, go out there with a plan and be a great teammate.”
In his previous 10 games entering Wednesday, Judge was 19-for-37 (.514) and he’s also walked nine times.
Judge has previously expressed a desire to hit .300 over a full season and finished at .287 a year ago.
“For me, grading a hitter has always been around [batting] average,’’ Judge said. “Maybe it’s a little old school, but can you hit or can you hit? It’s always been a goal of mine to try to get to [.300].”
And like with his home run pursuit, Judge said he’s not going to get caught up in these numbers or in how opposing teams and pitchers go after him.
“I try not to think about it,’’ Judge said. “I’m so focused on what I’ve got to do in the box. I can’t think about if guys are pitching to me or not pitching to me. In certain situations when I’m hitting, I can see maybe they’re pitching around you. I’ve still got to stay locked in to my approach. If I start thinking about, ‘Am I gonna get walked here or are they gonna pitch around me?’, it’s gonna take me right out of what I’m trying to do at the plate.”






