How Aaron Judge Helped Ignite Yankees' Run to Division Title

The Yankees' captain made a crucial decision that sparked the team's current run.

Sep 26, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees center fielder Aaron Judge (99) celebrates after defeating the Baltimore Orioles to clinch the American League East title at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Is there a more valuable player in baseball than Aaron Judge?

The New York Yankees' captain has been everything his team could have hoped for and then some; his 58 home runs, 144 RBI, 1.169 OPS, 220 wRC+, and 11.3 fWAR are all the best in MLB this season. His contributions have allowed the Bronx Bombers to not only claim the AL East title, but possibly the top seed in the American League.

But Judge has proven to be even more valuable to the Yankees off the field than on it; there's a reason why he became the team's first captain since "The Captain" Derek Jeter. His leadership qualities and accountability play just as big of a role to the team's success as his play on the diamond, with his latest action as captain sparking New York's September run.

After a middling August (14-12), the Yankees were still battling the Baltimore Orioles for the AL East crown when they began a new month in Arlington to play the Texas Rangers. In addition to the tight division race, the team was facing scrutiny for their underperformance in the previous month - which saw them lose games and series to weaker teams - and roster expansion decisions, such as the initial refusal to promote top prospect Jasson Dominguez.

To get the team focused and motivated, Judge initiated a players-only meeting behind closed doors, according to Brendan Kuty of The Athletic. There were no coaches or front-office officials present.

“I thought it was a good idea for me to say a couple of words and kind of talk it out, get guys focused," Judge told The Athletic as he celebrated with his team after Thursday's division-clinching win.

Aaron Judge called a players-only meeting near the beginning of September in Texas.

The captain's message: Ignore the outside noise.

The Yankees then went on a roll, separating themselves from the O's and winning the AL East.

READ: https://t.co/sa7pYz4qmL

— Brendan Kuty 🧟‍♂️ (@BrendanKutyNJ) September 27, 2024

Judge's message was, "what’s important is in this room, and what we do in here". The results may not have been immediate as the Yankees dropped two-of-three to Texas, but have since gone 13-7 with series wins over the Chicago Cubs, Kansas City Royals, Seattle Mariners, Oakland Athletics, and the arch-rival Boston Red Sox. They surpassed Baltimore for first place on September 7, an advantage that proved to be permanent.

Numerous teammates, such as Clarke Schmidt, Luke Weaver, Oswaldo Cabrera, and Alex Verdugo praised their captain for getting everyone on the same page - especially when the games started mattering more and more.

“It got you grounded,” Weaver said. “It made you remember what’s going on. It helped slow things down a little bit. I think at the end of the day, sometimes you need that reminder. You need to be able to be like, ‘I don’t have to do it my individual self. We’re a team.'”

“That was Judgey talking to the group,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “That was with them. He’s become such a good leader. And, look, the thing is, the noise here — if you let it in too much — it can start to affect you. It’s important that these guys lean on each other, lean into each other, support each other and keep the blinders on in that way.”

Thanks to Judge's leadership skills, the Yankees are seemingly peaking at the right time and firmly control their own destiny. This weekend, they will conclude the regular season with a three-game series at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates - before they begin a playoff run that hopefully ends in their 28th World Series championship.