Judge Ties A-Rod for Home Runs with Yankees and Leads Victory against Braves

Aaron Judge continues to make his mark in the history of the New York Yankees. The captain hit his 351st home run in the uniform of the Bronx Bombers, tying Alex Rodriguez for sixth place on the franchise’s home run list. The hit, which came in the first inning against pitcher Grant Holmes, was key in the 4-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. This home run, in addition to being Judge’s 36th of the season, represented an additional achievement, as he has now hit home runs in 32 different Major League stadiums. This puts him in a tie for third place among active players with the most stadiums visited where he has hit home runs, alongside Willy Adames, Randal Grichuk, and Carlos Santana. Only Giancarlo Stanton (36) and Manny Machado (34) have achieved more.

HR No. 36 on the year for the Captain 💥
@TheJudge44 🫡 pic.twitter.com/E4sWKIUvdn

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) July 20, 2024

The Yankees’ attack was reinforced by a run-scoring single from Paul Goldschmidt in the very first inning, and by the outstanding performance of starting pitcher Marcus Stroman, who pitched six innings allowing five hits, one run, without issuing walks and striking out four. Since his return from the injured list, Stroman maintains an ERA of 3.00 in four starts. Jorbit Vivas, from Venezuela, contributed a run batted in after being hit with the bases loaded in the sixth inning, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. drove in another with a double in the seventh. In the history of the Yankees, Judge is behind legends like Babe Ruth (659), Mickey Mantle (536), Lou Gehrig (493), Joe DiMaggio (361) and Yogi Berra (358). If he maintains his pace, he could move up in the rankings. With this victory, the Yankees secured the series in Atlanta, demonstrating their ability to compete at the highest level, with Judge as leader and main batter.