'He's a beast': Judge powers Yanks with first 3-homer game

NEW YORK -- If ever there was a player who could single-handedly put a team on his back, even in the midst of its deepest slump in decades, Aaron Judge would be it.

With the possibility of his club’s first 10-game losing streak since 1913 looming ever so perilously, the Yankees’ captain notched the first three-homer game of his career to carry New York (61-65) to a 9-1 victory over the Nationals (58-69) on Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium.

Mere hours earlier, general manager Brian Cashman admitted that while this season has been a “disaster,” there was still something for the Yankees to play for, saying: “What I expect is for us to continue to find ways to do everything in our power to compete.”

Enter Judge, whom he signed to a nine-year, $360 million contract extension in December.

New York’s designated hitter on the night, Judge mashed a homer in his first two plate appearances -- a solo shot in the first inning and a grand slam in the second -- then added another solo blast in the seventh. With his 25th, 26th and 27th homers of the season, Judge tallied a career-high-tying six RBIs, the most by a Yankee since his own effort on July 29, 2022.

“What a night by 99,” said manager Aaron Boone. “I mean, he's special. Obviously what we saw him do last year, he's basically doing the same thing; he just missed a big chunk. He's just a special player. It's pretty remarkable what he does under any circumstance.

“Anyone can be a spark, but you're starting at the top there.”

Judge’s first homer broke up a stretch of 61 straight innings in which the Yankees had not led. His second, the fifth grand slam of his career, ensured that their historic losing streak would be broken, too. His third gave him the 34th three-homer game in the regular season in franchise history; he is the 25th player to record one, and the first since Anthony Rizzo on April 26, 2022.

As Judge made his way back to the dugout after the final round-tripper, there was one person in particular that he wanted to see. Catcher Kyle Higashioka had a three-homer game of his own on Sept. 16, 2020, and he has made a habit of teasing Judge about his inability to do the same.

“Over the years, he would always remind me every game I’d have two and I couldn't get the third one that, ‘Hey, one of these days, kid, you'll join my club and be in the exclusive club,’” Judge said.

So how did Higashioka, who came up in the Yankees’ farm system with Judge, respond to his friend finally getting over the hump?

“I [told him], ‘I remember my first time,’” Higashioka said with a laugh. “But no, it was fantastic. We've kind of been waiting for that for a long time. Me and Rizzo have been joking with him a lot, and now we have nothing to hold over his head.”

Judge has 32 multihomer games in his career, the fifth most in franchise history behind only pinstripe legends Babe Ruth (68), Mickey Mantle (46), Lou Gehrig (43) and Joe DiMaggio (35). Fittingly, Judge’s grand slam, which traveled a Statcast-projected 437 feet to straightaway center field, landed atop the Monument Park netting, where plaques of all four of those former Bronx Bombers reside.

The early slam also settled starter Luis Severino, who has struggled mightily this season but rebounded in a big way Wednesday. The right-hander allowed only one hit across 6 2/3 scoreless innings to earn his third victory of the year.

“He's a beast,” Severino said of Judge. “You know every time he goes out there, something good is going to happen.”

It was Judge’s fifth multihomer game of the season, and his first since he injured his right big toe on June 3 at Dodger Stadium, a moment that changed the trajectory of his -- and New York’s -- season.

So even though Judge was in the on-deck circle when Jake Bauers grounded out as the final batter of the bottom of the eighth -- falling just shy of a fifth plate appearance and a chance to perhaps send one more out of the park -- all the captain was thinking about was how the Yankees “needed a big win.”

“Nah, I wanted to get the game over with,” Judge said. “It would have been nice, but we were in a great position there. Sevy had a great game, guys up and down the lineup had great at-bats. It was time to pass it on to Wandy [Peralta] and close that thing out.”