Yankees’ NRI Profile: Aaron Judge

It’s been quite some time since the New York Yankees have had a legitimate offensive threat to be excited about. We fans have been teased by the likes of Jesus Montero and Mason Williams in years past and lately there are many question marks surrounding Gary Sanchez’s fate as catcher of the future. Those days are gone.

Aaron Judge is a year away, but he will be in Tampa at Yankees’ spring training as a non-roster invitee  and he offers a lot in which to be excited. Judge joined the Yankees in 2013 as part of the first round draft pick trio that has since changed the outlook of the Yankees’ future. Sandwiched in between third baseman Eric Jagielo and left hander Ian Clarkin at the 32 pick, the three have taken the Yankees’ farm system out of the murky depths to which it sank for the past several seasons. 

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Judge looks like he should be a tight end or power forward in the NBA, but he uses his tremendous frame to his advantage. Standing at 6 foot 7 and weighing in at 230 pounds, Judge surprisingly moves swiftly in right field and appears to be the total package. MLB Pipeline doesn’t grade Judge below a 50 in any category (50 Hit, 60 Power, 55 Run, 60 Arm, Field 50 for an overall 50) which usually indicates a major league skill set. That’s not to say the soon to be 23-year old will be in right field in 2015, but it does mean he is not far away.

Judge brings a lot of raw power to his game, already being compared to Giancarlo Stanton, but in his first professional season in 2014 he showed he has all of the tools. He slashed a .308/.419/.486 line with 17 home runs and 78 RBI over Low and High-A ball.

He has long arms and a big swing, which often leads to a high strikeout rate, which Judge fell victim to himself. Despite striking out 131 times in 467 combined at bats, he did walk an impressive 89 times as well. He would also add an impressive run in the Arizona Fall League.

Expectations should not be sky high for Judge in his first major league spring training, but it will sure be exciting to watch what he can do. Carlos Beltran is the returning right fielder and the road for Judge is not that crowded. Chris Young is currently the fourth outfielder, and like Beltran, is aging. Should Judge have another season like last year, there is no reason to expect a legitimate shot for the starting right field spot in 2016 for the young star-to-be.

Baby steps, however. Expect Judge to start the season with the Double-A Trenton Thunder and work his way to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre by mid season, if not sooner.

Realistically, it would have to take a long and bad string of injuries to see Judge in the bigs at all in 2015, but as the last two seasons have shown, stranger things have happened. For now, sit back and enjoy watching the development of the Yankees future All Star.

Next: Different Offensive Approach

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