Judge homers, Yanks roll: 'That's what it's supposed to look like'

BALTIMORE -- The Yankees knew that Aaron Judge’s return would help morale, an instant pick-me-up for a flailing offense searching for footing during a pivotal stretch of their schedule. Yet even his teammates marvel at how the slugger is picking up right where he left off.

Playing in his second game since being activated from the injured list, Judge blasted a long two-run homer as part of a three-hit performance, helping to power the Yankees to an 8-3 victory over the first-place Orioles on Saturday night at Camden Yards.

“That’s why he gets the big bucks. He’s the captain for a reason,” Isiah Kiner-Falefa said. “He means everything to this organization. You see the difference in energy, with and without. It’s pretty self-explanatory. The fans rise up when he’s in the lineup.”

Giancarlo Stanton and Kyle Higashioka also homered in the contest, while Kiner-Falefa logged a bases-clearing double, prompting Yankees manager Aaron Boone to remark of his offense, “That’s what it’s supposed to look like, right there.”

Not surprisingly, the most essential ingredient has been Judge’s return.

All early signs have been encouraging for Judge, who is playing with a torn ligament in his right big toe that could require surgery after the season. Utilizing a protective shield on his right foot, Judge lined out on the first pitch he saw in Friday’s 1-0 loss, then worked three walks.

Facing Baltimore starter Tyler Wells on Saturday, Judge flew out to deep center field in his first at-bat, then clobbered a third-inning Wells fastball for a Statcast-projected 442-foot homer, clocked off the bat at 111.6 mph.

“There’s no question Aaron Judge is maybe the best hitter in the league,” Higashioka said. “When we have him in the lineup, I think we all get a little boost.”

The blast was Judge’s 22nd at Camden Yards, his highest total in any visiting ballpark. It also was his 20th of the season, a figure that still leads the club despite Judge missing 42 games after his June 3 injury. Judge added a couple of singles, exiting after striking out in the seventh inning.

“Just trying to do my job,” Judge said. “The guys in front of me are having good at-bats. Just try to keep it simple and use the whole field. Simple stuff.”

Boone said he is leaning toward resting Judge in Sunday’s series finale, reasoning that Judge “hasn’t come close to even playing games for almost two months.” But given a chance to win a series, the manager seems to be leaving room for discussion.

“As much as I want him in there, we’ve got to be smart,” Boone said. “Whether it’s tomorrow or the next day, I do feel strongly that it’s got to happen.”

Regardless, Boone said he envisions starting Judge in “nine or 10” of the Yankees’ 13 consecutive games until their next off-day on Aug. 10.

“I understand it; I’m not happy about it,” Judge said with a grin. “That’s a discussion we’ll have on our own. We’ll see the schedule we come up with and go from there.”

With right-hander Clarke Schmidt holding the Orioles to three runs over five innings, the Stanton and Judge homers represented a time-tested formula for Yankees wins. Including the postseason, the Bombers are 30-3 when both players homer. We needn’t recount how the team performed while Judge was absent.

“I felt like when he wasn’t there, it was everybody flying open, trying to do too much,” Kiner-Falefa said. “[Friday], he comes in, three walks, right off the bat. I feel like everybody was able to slow the game down a little bit just by watching those at-bats. You get to watch the best player in the world, in my opinion. It helps out a lot.”

Kiner-Falefa’s double broke the game open, a 10-pitch battle with reliever Bryan Baker that resulted in a sharp line drive down the left-field line and prompted Boone to call it “one of the best at-bats of the season.”

Appropriately enough, Judge was the lead runner on Kiner-Falefa’s knock, stomping his foot on home plate as he whirled his arm to wave his teammates home. The past two months have taught us this: If these Yankees are going anywhere, Judge must lead the way.

“I wouldn’t count us out,” Judge said. “I think we’re going to take it one day at a time and we’re going to continue to show up every single day. I think that’s all we can do at this point.”