October Hero Jealous of Aaron Judge’s Physique

Yankees outfield prospect Aaron Judge has taken the farm system by storm. And today at George Steinbrenner field, Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson expressed his opinion on Judge’s size and strength. 

I too would be jealous if a 6-foot-7, 255-pound mammoth were standing in front of me. But for “Mr. October” himself to be jealous, now that’s more than a compliment.

According to George A. King III of the New York Post, Jackson, who has 563 career home runs, was asked how many more bombs would he have hit if he were the size of the Yankee prospect. With no hesitation, Jackson answered:

“Nine-sixty-three.”

King pointed out that 963 would push Barry Bonds‘ All-Time record of 762 home runs into second place on the all-time list. I’m sure every Yankee fan will take that home run total, but Jackson is very high on Judge, and so should New York’s fan base.

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In a scouting report by Baseball Prospectus, Judge is acclaimed for his natural strength, plus arm, and athleticism for a man of his size. In addition to the positives on the scouting report, scouts have drawn comparisons to Miami Marlins’ slugger Giancarlo Stanton, who is considered to be one of today’s best hitters.

Judge started his 2015 campaign with Double-A Trenton providing a slash line of .284/.350/.516 with 12 home runs while driving in 44 runs in 63 games. Impressive numbers, but experienced Jackson-like struggles after his promotion to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

The 23-year old struggled with pitch recognition producing a stat line of .224/.308/.373 with 8 home runs while driving in 28 runs in 61 games for the Rail Riders. Judge also struck out 74 times in those games.

It’s noted in Judge’s scouting report that he’s prone to a high strike out rate but it’s completely normal for a player with his physique to experience a high strike out rate.

In King’s article, he explains how Jackson had a similar issue when he was rising up as a Major League star:

“Like Jackson, who is the career leader in strikeouts with 2,597, Judge has big power and is prone to the whiffs. In two minor league seasons, Judge has struck out 275 times with 266 hits and 37 homers in 945 at-bats.”

Jackson old the Post a while back that he thinks Judge is the “best player in the [Eastern League],’’ and noted that his competition is “over matched” by the slugger. Judge will continue to see work in Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to try and improve his pitch recognition, but the way he’s hitting baseball’s out of George Steinbrenner field, he should have no issue adjusting in a timely manner.

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Judge’s MLB ETA is expected to be in 2017, but he very well may be the first option if an injury occurs on the big league level.