Horrific Aaron Judge strikeout graphic reminds Yankees fans of extra near-mistake

As any fan of the New York Yankees knows, a strikeout is marginally more fun than a double play ball — but that doesn't mean we need to congratulate Aaron Judge for opting to make one postseason out at a time instead of two.

Judge, in need of a narrative-flipping postseason, began to show signs of emerging in Game 2 of the ALDS. He inside-outed a fly ball to deep right field. He took a walk. He smacked an infield single into the third base hole. Still, he'll be remembered for letting Kansas City Royals left-hander Cole Ragans off the hook with a first-inning strikeout -- at least, he will be until he gives Yankee fans reason to chant, "MVP!" again.

Judge looking more like Rob Deer than Rob Refsnyder in the Yankees' recent postseasons has certainly been a prominent reason behind the team's downfall. But, if the front office listened to the fanbase and free agency projections, things could've been even worse.

TBS' Game 2 broadcast flashed a horrific graphic confirming that Judge held the highest strikeout rate in postseason history for anyone with over 200 plate appearances. By the end of the game, he'd dipped below Martin Maldonado once again (phew!), but the visual damage had already been done.

Third on that ignominious list? Cody Bellinger, a power threat that was a heavily connected Yankees target before the Cubs went on a run at the 2023 trade deadline, then again during the 2023-24 offseason. We told you. You can't have too many of these.

Yankees should be glad they didn't sign Cody Bellinger after he became strikeout neighbors with Aaron Judge

Again: striking out, even in the postseason, does not automatically make someone a useless player. Mike Napoli, fifth on the list, fueled a 2013 Red Sox World Series run, punctuated by a massive homer in Detroit in the ALCS. He ended up shirtless, wandering through the streets of Boston covered in beer. That seemed pretty fun, at the time.

Bellinger himself has had standout playoff moments, hammering a huge home run at Dodger Stadium during the 2021 NLCS following one of his worst seasons; he hit .412 in the series. But streakiness abounds with these home-run-or-bust-all-of-a-sudden guys in October, and adding Bellinger to Judge wouldn't have done much to ease the Captain's burden.

What the Yankees need is more reliable October presences surrounding their centerpiece, not fewer. They also need Judge to respond to his currently tremendous burden. That would've become increasingly difficult if Bellinger were making big money beside him.