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Yankees: Guess who made the cover of Sports Illustrated

By Steve Contursi

Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports
Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports /
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A Yankees power-hitting outfielder received an honor reserved for the rarest occasions when he made the cover of Sports Illustrated.

COVER STORY: New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge stands out, but all he wants to do is blend in http://on.si.com/2q5E750

Posted by Sports Illustrated on Wednesday, May 10, 2017

The Yankees, according to a story published by Bleacher Report in 2009,  over the past 55 years, have had the most covers by any sports team, with a total of 66. Many these covers have been team photos not specifically dedicated to an individual player. Safe to say, though, Aaron Judge is in rare company with the cover story from SI last week.

Through his size alone at 6′ 7″ tall, he has captured the attention and admiration of Yankees fans, and now, all of America. He is a sight to behold during batting practice, and his colleagues are known to stop what they’re doing when he takes batting practice to watch him spray home run balls from left to right with a short and quick stroke that never seems to miss a mistake thrown by a pitcher.

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Despite a recent slump, Judge continues to lead the American League in home runs and RBI and is still hitting over .300, consistently hitting the ball harder than anyone before him (it’s been measured!).

Moreover, he’s been the cause for pundits across America to reach back into their long-term memory bank to pull up comparative names from the past like Richie Sexson, Dave Kingman, Frank Howard, and Dave Winfield to find players of equal size and strength.

And when they finish with that, they text the PR Director of the Atlanta Braves for a quote from Giancarlo Stanton, who has reached the point where he doesn’t want to hear about it anymore. And who can blame him?

As a matter of fact, who can blame anyone for not being infatuated with the display of sheer power put forth by Judge this season?

The Sports Illustrated story was written diligently and passionately by Stephanie Apstein and is a must read (in full) when you have the time. In her cover story, though, she captures the essence of the man with a singular exchange:

"Why hasn’t he looked for an apartment yet? “I don’t want to put all my cards that I’m going to be in New York and then I go to Triple A,” says the major league home run leader. “Maybe next year, if everything goes well.”"

Sure Aaron, if everything goes well, you’ll be joining, or perhaps even buying, Derek Jeter‘s penthouse on the East Side. Still, it’s good to see a young man with his feet on the ground, at least for now.

The ground he walks on, though, will continue to shake as more accolades and requests for his attention will continue to pour into the Yankees front offices. And in a recent column, I referred to Jason Zillo, the team’s PR Director, as Judge’s Guardian Angel, at least for the near future.

Because it’ll be Zillo’s job to serve as a buffer for Judge in deciding which requests to honor and which to politely, but firmly, turn down. The Sports Illustrated offer was, of course, a no-brainer, but others will require a delicate touch that keeps the mystique alive while not crushing Judge with too many demands for his time.

Meanwhile, Yankees fans are jumping on the opportunity to have a new hero in pinstripes. And especially one that hits 450 ft. home runs. And even the Stadium announcer has gotten into the act by banging a gavel three times while telling the crowd, “All rise, here comes the Judge,” every time Judge hits a bomb.

It’s fun. And it makes for a good time for fans attending a game, who have quickly grown accustomed now to stay in the seats whenever Judge comes to bat. That may not make the owners of the concession stands happy, but it sure makes all of us happy, and more importantly perhaps, excited about the possibility that there’s a new home run king in the Bronx again.

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