Yankees: Blake Snell admits Aaron Judge tries to troll him while batting

Rays star Blake Snell revealed Aaron Judge’s tactics in the batter’s box when they face off.

Did we know that New York Yankees star Aaron Judge’s competitive edge is … smiling? According to Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Blake Snell, that’s at least his tactic when he’s going up against the division-rival left-hander.

Though Snell is just 3-6 with a 4.41 ERA and 1.49 WHIP against the Yankees in his career, he’s managed to keep Judge and his smirking at bay. The former Rookie of the Year is just 1-for-14 lifetime with six walks and eight strikeouts against Snell.

Judge might need a new strategy to get to the Rays pitcher because the current one isn’t working, as further evidenced after his 0-for-4 evening against Tampa Bay on Friday night.

Perhaps Judge is doing the work in the trenches for his teammates, though, given Snell’s overall lack of success against the Bombers. Maybe the lefty uses too much of his energy trying to get Judge out and then gets shelled by the rest of the lineup. Something to consider!

Or maybe Judge is just laughing to himself every time he steps into the batter’s box vs Snell because of the Rays pitcher’s endless chatter about facing the Yankees. Given his history against New York, it’s kind of funny he keeps commenting on the Rays-Yanks rivalry, especially when he (and Tampa) really don’t have a leg to stand on.

Yes, the Yankees have lost a pretty embarrassing five straight games at Tropicana Field, but what have the Rays done lately? They’ve made the playoffs just one since Kevin Cash took over as manager back in 2015 and all they have to show for it is a loss in the ALDS last year against the Houston Astros (though they did beat the A’s in the AL Wild Card Game).

Nonetheless, the Yanks need to rebound fast after their last two losses and will face the Rays twice on Saturday and once on Sunday. Here’s to hoping Judge is smiling for other reasons by the end of the weekend.

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