AARON JUDGE IS THE HERO AGAINST THE ORIOLES

Last night was a long one for the Yankees and the Orioles with a few rain delays reminiscent of Yankees Opening Day, but this time the game was able to be finished.

At this point, the Yankees have had a 17-game win streak over the Orioles, and it was looking like it was going to be an easy 18. Luke Voit's grand slam helped put the team in the lead 5-0, but J.A. Happ gave up a pair of two-run homers, then Jonathan Loaisiga gave up another two-run shot which let the Yankees trail behind.

Aaron Judge wasn't going to let his previous strikeouts get to him, and knew he needed to make a big play. With the go-ahead runners on base, he gave one big swing.

“I knew this was my time to come up and forget about the past and come up big for my teammates,” Judge said on a Zoom call from Baltimore. “They were counting on me. It’s times like that you got to get the job done.”

His second home run of the year saved the Yankees and earned them their 18th straight win over the Orioles. Judge said he was inspired by watching DJ LeMahieu's single to the opposite field, putting him and Gio Urshela in a good spot to get the lead. 

“I had a good view of DJ’s base hit to right field. A lot of pitches, I was kind of pulling off, not really staying through it in the middle of the field,” Judge said. “Kind of seeing a nice swing from DJ locked me in. I just had to come up big.”

Next up, the Yankees are headed back home to play their rival Red Sox. Even though they won't be able to have fans to cheer them on, the team is looking forward to being back in New York.

"This team loves to play in New York, so we’re excited about that,” Judge said. “It’s definitely going to be different, Yankee home opener with no fans. That’s one thing I always look forward to every single year is that place gets rocking on Opening Day for us. During the intros, everything like that, it’s something special."

--Missy O'Rourke

BYB Contributor

Twitter: @missy_orourke