Heading into spring training, Aaron Judge appears to be trending toward starting the season with the Yankees in the Bronx.
The 24-year-old right fielder saw some time at the big league level last season before going down with an oblique strain that ultimately put him on the shelf for the remainder of the season.
In his limited time with the Yankees, Judge showed off two of the more glaring aspects of his game to date: his incredible power and his propensity to strikeout.
Entering the 2017 season as the 45th overall ranked prospect, Judge has the upside as a potential Rookie of the Year candidate, but the downside of being sent back down to Scranton.
While GM Brian Cashman holds firm the starting right field job is currently Judge’s to lose, he could start the season back at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre if improvements aren’t made. The Yankees have depth in the outfield with Aaron Hicks and Tyler Austin also competing for roster spots this spring.
The biggest focus for Judge this offseason is limiting the strikeouts and improving his contact. There is a near consensus among scouts that if given 500 big league at-bats, Judge has the ability to hit over 25-30 home runs. However, its getting to that level of production without reaching the 175-plus strikeouts category that may prove to be the challenge.
Earlier today fans were given a glimpse at Judge’s new simplified approach courtesy of Yankee’s beat reporter for MLB, Bryan Hoch.
.@TheJudge44 in the cage #Yankees #MLB #SpringTraining pic.twitter.com/iVXc4dsI9Q
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) February 10, 2017
While in the cage, Judge appears to be working on eliminating his high leg kick while also incorporating more of a crouch to his stance potentially adding an inside-out element to his swing in order to lead to more contact.
Another look at @TheJudge44 and his simplified batting stance. #Yankees hope it can produce better contact in 2017. pic.twitter.com/Szk5olTP0B
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) February 10, 2017
Standing at 6-feet 7-inches tall and weighing 275 pounds, Judge has more than enough leverage in his swing to drive balls out to all parts of the park. If he’s able to generate more consistent contact and less swings and misses, Judge’s production and upside skyrocket.
Follow me on Twitter, @JaredSaul.
