Home Run chase in their rearview, Aaron Judge and Yankees ready for Guardians in Game 1 of ALDS
NEW YORK -- Rested and refreshed, Aaron Judge and the Yankees are set to open their AL Division Series on Tuesday night against the visiting Cleveland Guardians.
The last time we saw judge between the lines, he was making history last week in Texas. He has had six days off since to rest and repair and says that surreal home run chase not only helped himself prepare for the pressures of the postseason, his teammates benefited as well, CBS2's Otis Livingston reported.
"We're gonna still have those same feelings, same jitters, with the crowd on their feet , especially Yankee Stadium these next two games," Judge said. "It's gonna be a packed house, so those past couple weeks of goin through that and having this whole team be there and witness that whole situation prepared us to what's to come here in the postseason."
"This is the postseason now. Obviously, every pitch is huge and people are hanging on every pitch similar to how it was down the stretch in his at-bats in games that didn't affect the standings," manager Aaron Boone said.
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And the fans will certainly be on their feet a lot on Tuesday night. Expect the normally raucous Yankee Stadium playoff crowd but maybe even more so because it's the first postseason game in the Bronx since the 2019 ALCS. That happened exactly 1,089 long days ago.
So, yeah, the place will be rocking.
"I think the fans are hungry just like we are for a championship, so they're a big part of this, this whole thing for us. They're out there battling with us every single pitch, and when they bring energy, we feel that and we feed off of that, so we're all just looking forward to putting on a good show for them in this postseason," Judge said.
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"I know the level of expectation. I know what they're about and I know how loud it gets," said outfielder Bronxville native Harrison Bader, who was acquired at the trade deadline from St. Louis. "All emotion aside, we have business to take care of, and I'm just excited for the fans to see and watch us in our pursuit of winning a World Series here."
Right-hander Gerrit Cole will take the ball for the Yankees against the Guardians' Cal Quantrill in the opener.
Game 2 is set for Thursday night, also in the Bronx.
