62, page 39
“felt like I was swinging a toothpick”: Bryant-Jon Anteola, “Yankees See Judge Fit for First Round,” Fresno Bee, June 7, 2013.
“a lot of guys were going max effort”: Mark Feinsand. “Oral History of Yankees Drafting Aaron Judge,” MLB.com, October 4, 2022, https://www.mlb.com/yankees/news/featured/oral-history-of-yankees-drafting-aaron-judge-c278026828.
“If you listen to Judge talk”: Jake Saldate and Chad Rothford, “Jordan Ribera,” Hit or Die podcast, episode 172: “Jordan Ribera,” September 13, 2022.
“I love that. That comes from Mom and Dad”: Anthony McCarron, “How Aaron Judge Became a Yankee: From Small-Town California Kid to Bombers Superstar,” New York Daily News, October 5, 2022.
“not sure if I could ever live here”: Bryant-Jon Anteola, “Yankees See Judge Fit for First Round,” Fresno Bee, June 7, 2013.
“I’ve always remembered that”: Dan Martin, “Did He Call His Shot? Great Stories of an Older Derek Jeter,” New York Post, May 13, 2017.
“Even when I was in Charleston”: Nathan Maciborski, “Might at the Museum,” Yankees Magazine, July 12, 2022.
“[Judge] was like, ‘Should I keep 99?’ ”: Ryan Ruocco and CC Sabathia, “Aaron Judge on the 2022 Lockout Offseason & His Baseball Future,” R2C2 podcast, February 17, 2022.
Chapter 2: Launch Quickness
“Aaron struggled so bad”: Andy McCullough, “Before He Was Aaron Judge’s Agent, David Matranga Was a Literal One-Hit Wonder,” The Athletic, April 9, 2020, https://theathletic.com/1733815/2020/04/09/before-he-was-aaron-judges-agent-david-matranga-was-a-literal-one-hit-wonder/.
“There was a lot of negative feedback”: Marc Carig, “ ‘If I’m going to fail, I’d rather fail my way.’ The Untold Story Behind the Rise of Aaron Judge,” The Athletic, May 29, 2018, https://theathletic.com/369532/2018/05/29/if-im-going-to-fail-id-rather-fail-my-way-the-untold-story-behind-the-rise-of-yankees-superstar-aaron-judge/.
“Adam Judge”: “Aaron Judge Asks Yankees Fans About Aaron Judge,” The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, May 15, 2017.
“I had the best time in the whole world”: “Sotomayor Joins Yankees Booth,” MLB.com, August 31, 2017, https://www.mlb.com/video/sotomayor-joins-yankees-booth-c1796548483.
Chapter 3: On the Clock
“The sport that we’re playing”: Ryan Ruocco and CC Sabathia, “Josh Donaldson on Learning to Play Free,” R2C2 podcast, April 13, 2022.
“I knew something was eventually going to be up”: George A. King III, “Yankee Prank Catches Roger,” New York Post, February 27, 1999.
“I wanted to hear him out”: Ryan Ruocco and CC Sabathia. “Josh Donaldson on Learning to Play Free,” R2C2, April 13, 2022.
“Last year was the trailer”: Shi Davidi, “Guerrero Jr. Captures Blue Jays Outlook Perfectly with Trailer for Movie Quip,” Sportsnet.ca, March 17, 2022, https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/article/guerrero-jr-captures-blue-jays-outlook-perfectly-with-trailer-for-movie-quip/.
“We kind of said, ‘Hey, let’s keep this between us’ ”: Sean Gregory, “Athlete of the Year: Aaron Judge,” Time, December 6, 2022.
’61 Flashback: The MVP
“A customer walks up to me”: Associated Press, “Roger Surprised, Sorry to Leave KC,” Binghamton Press and Sun-Bulletin, December 12, 1959.
“Not all that happy”: Maury Allen, Roger Maris: A Man for All Seasons (New York: Donald J. Fine, 1986), 104.
“Listen, kid. Yankee players don’t dress like you”: Tony Kubek and Terry Pluto, Sixty-One: The Team, the Record, the Men (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989), 9.
“The hell with them”: Ibid.
“Nobody will touch it”: Associated Press, “Despite 8 More Games in ’61, Ruth Record Safe, Says Maris,” Buffalo News, January 24, 1961.
“I’ll never make the mistake”: George F. Will, “The Wonders of Being 70,” Washington Post, May 6, 2011.
“I was running as hard as I could”: Ken Plutnicki, “Mantle’s Knee Injury Was Just the Start,” New York Times, May 4, 2012.
“There are a lot of things”: Tony Kubek and Terry Pluto, Sixty-One: The Team, the Record, the Men. (New York: Simon & Schuster), 1989, 241.
“I hope he plays 162 games”: Miles Coverdale Jr., The 1960s in Sports (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2020), 65.
Chapter 4: Swinging Big
“When you unwrap a Reggie! bar”: Mike Downey, “Reflections on Reggie, Number 44,” Los Angeles Times, August 2, 1993.
“He looked on Google”: Jeff Seidel, “Crazy Story of Why a Waterford Baseball Facility Shut Down for a Pair of New York Yankees,” Detroit Free Press, April 21, 2022.
“I swear to God”: Ibid.
“They’ll come”: Dan Martin, “Aaron Judge Reveals Early Regrets about Turning Down Yankees Offer,” New York Post, November 10, 2022.
“He’s made for Yankee Stadium”: Jake Saldate and Chad Rothford, “Mike Batesole,” Hit or Die podcast, episode 35, January 6, 2020.
“Some of the things that were said”: Paul Hoynes, “Guardians’ Oscar Mercado, Myles Straw Go Toe-to-Toe with Yankee Stadium’s Bleacher Creatures.” Cleveland.com, April 24, 2022, https://www.cleveland.com/guardians/2022/04/guardians-oscar-mercado-myles-straw-go-toe-to-toe-with-yankee-stadiums-bleacher-creatures.html.
“People say all kinds of stuff”: Mark W. Sanchez, “Guardians’ Myles Straw Got Death Threats after Ugly Yankees Fan Incident,” New York Post, October 10, 2022.
“One thing I picked up a lot”: Leadership in the Clubhouse, Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo, All Rise Foundation, January 24, 2023.
“There were so many times”: Ibid.
“He came as advertised”: David Haugh and Bruce Levine, “Brian Cashman Shares What He Learned from Ryan Poles, Calls Jameson Taillon ‘A Gamer,’ ” Inside the Clubhouse, 670 The Score, February 4, 2023.
“taking more time to see the data”: Paul Sullivan, “Anthony Rizzo draws backlash for opting not to get the COVID-19 vaccine,” Chicago Tribune, June 11, 2021.
Chapter 5: Best View in the House
“It’s probably time for me to retire”: Erik Boland, “Rob Thomson, Kevin Long remember Aaron Judge’s noisy first impression,” Newsday, October 29, 2022.
“If you don’t execute”: Tim Stebbins, “Yankees Providing Tough Early Test for White Sox,” NBC Sports Chicago, May 14, 2022, https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/white-sox/yankees-rough-white-sox-vince-velasquez-providing-tough-test.
“Leaned on him a little bit: Scott Merkin, “Velasquez Guts It out amid Tough Stretch for Sox,” MLB.com, February 8, 2023, https://www.mlb.com/news/vince-velasquez-strong-against-yankees.
“Hand’s not sticky anymore”: Steven Taranto. “Ozzie Guillén Unloads on Josh Donaldson for Accusing White Sox’s Lucas Giolito of Cheating,” CBSSports.com, July 1, 2021, https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/ozzie-guillen-unloads-on-josh-donaldson-for-accusing-white-soxs-lucas-giolito-of-cheating
“I kind of feel like today’s Jackie Robinson”: Stephanie Apstein, “Tim Anderson Is Going to Play the Game His Way,” Sports Illustrated, April 30, 2019.
“Usually you have inside jokes”: LaMond Pope, “ ‘Utter bull(bleep)’: Chicago White Sox Closer Liam Hendriks Rejects Josh Donaldson’s Explanation for His ‘Jackie’ Comment,” Chicago Tribune, May 22, 2022.
“At one point, the cops were looking for him”: Susan Slusser, “A’s Donaldson Takes Nothing for Granted,” San Francisco Chronicle, May 23, 2013.
“Making motherfuckers”: Andy McCullough, “Tim Anderson Silences Yankee Stadium as White Sox Sweep Doubleheader,” The Athletic, May 22, 2022, https://theathletic.com/3328174/2022/05/22/tim-anderson-silences-yankee-stadium-as-white-sox-sweep-doubleheader/.
“I whiffed”: Maria Guardado, “Eppler ‘Stunned’ by Ohtani Choosing Angels,” MLB.com, December 10, 2017, https://www.mlb.com/news/angels-billy-eppler-stunned-by-ohtani-news-c263195818.
’61 Flashback: Old-Timers’ Day
“wasn’t hitting the size of his breakfast check”: Phil Pepe, 1961: The Inside Story of the Maris-Mantle Home Run Chase. (Chicago: Triumph, 2011), 67.
“We want you to stop worrying”: Maury Allen, Roger Maris: A Man for All Seasons (New York: Donald I. Fine, 1986), 130.
“No matter what you say”: Tony Kubek and Terry Pluto, Sixty-One: The Team, the record, the Men (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989), 25.
Chapter 6: “Adversity Is Coming for You”
“The offseason is where I build my base”: Matthew Jussim, “Yankees Star Aaron Judge Is Already a Home Run–Hitting Goliath. Here’s How He Trains to Get Even Better,” Muscle & Fitness, May 16, 2018, https://www.muscleandfitness.com/athletes-celebrities/interviews/yankees-star-aaron-judge-already-home-run-hitting-goliath-heres-how/.
“Dad always said records are meant to be broken”: Dan Martin, “Roger Maris Jr. Would Be ‘Very Happy’ If Aaron Judge Breaks Dad’s Record,” New York Post, June 9, 2022.
“I’ve learned to navigate through lineups”: Ted Schwerlzer, “Cole Sands Finding Success through Consistency,” Twins Daily, July 1, 2022, https://twinsdaily.com/news-rumors/minnesota-twins/cole-sands-finding-success-through-consistency-r12588/.
“[I] certainly don’t miss some of the things over there”: Maddie Lee, “Cubs’ Clint Frazier: Hard to Understand ‘Where It Went Wrong’ with Yankees,” Chicago Sun-Times, June 9, 2022.
“I’m a very picky eater”: Gordon Wittenmyer, “Cubs’ Frazier Reveals Newly Discovered Weight-Loss Secret,” NBC Sports Chicago, May 29, 2022, https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/cubs/cubs-clint-frazier-reveals-effective-new-iowa-weight-loss-plan.
“To be honest, this is like an infield glove”: Nathan Maciborski, “Might at the Museum,” Yankees Magazine, July 12, 2022, https://www.mlb.com/news/yankees-magazine-might-at-the-museum.
“Sometimes it’s that guy next to you saying”: Leadership in the Clubhouse, Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo, All Rise Foundation, January 24, 2023.
“You see the pictures of him”: Peter Botte, “Aaron Judge, Yankees Get Taste of Roberto Clemente’s Legacy in Pittsburgh,” New York Post, July 5, 2022.
“To get back here and see”: Kevin Gorman, “ ‘It Gives Me a Thrill’: 1960 World Series Hero Bill Mazeroski Returns for Pirates-Yankees Opener,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 5, 2022.
Chapter 7: Hollywood Swinging
“I threw a first pitch slider”: Chris Kirschner, “Inside Aaron Judge’s Astonishing March to MLB, and Yankees, History, One Home Run at a Time,” The Athletic, October 4, 2022. https://theathletic.com/3615387/2022/10/04/aaron-judge-hr-chase/.
“The place that made me love baseball”: Austin Laymance, “Stanton doubles down on #ASGWorthy case.” MLB.com, May 21, 2017. https://www.mlb.com/news/marlins-giancarlo-stanton-hits-3-doubles-c231522656.
“Where was I going to go”: Mark Saxon, “Mike Bolsinger Laughs Off Giancarlo Stanton’s Blast,” ESPN.com, May 13, 2015. https://www.espn.com/blog/los-angeles/dodger-report/post/_/id/14302/mike-bolsinger-laughs-off-stantons-blast.
“I know he doesn’t throw hard”: Greg Joyce, “The Moments That Launched the Underdog Yankees Legend of Nestor Cortes,” New York Post, May 26, 2022.
“Tell me what I did in the minor leagues”: Adam Kilgore, “Nestor Cortes Wasn’t Sure He Had a Job. Now He’s the Yankees’ Best Pitcher,” Washington Post, May 20, 2022.
“I grew up in Miami”: Ibid.
’61 Flashback: Halfway to Ruthville
“Listen, I don’t give Babe Ruth a thought”: Tony Kubek and Terry Pluto, Sixty-One: The Team, the Record, the Men (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989), 88.
“Roger the red-necked Yankee”: Joe Trimble, “Rog the Red Thriving on Bad-Pitch Service,” New York Daily News, June 20, 1961.
“I used to tell him this wasn’t North Dakota”: Ibid.
“I liked it in Queens”: Ibid.
“The built-in characteristics of the ball haven’t changed”: Howard M. Tuckner, “ ’61 Ball May (Or May Not) Account for Homers,” New York Times, August 14, 1961.
“The conclusions of this research are wholly inaccurate,” Bradford William Davis, “Major League Baseball Used at Least Two Types of Balls Again This Year, and Evidence Points to a Third,” Insider, December 6, 2022. https://www.insider.com/mlb-used-two-balls-again-this-year-and-evidence-points-to-a-third-2022-12.
Chapter 8: Walk-Offs and Magic Wands
“They’re definitely our kryptonite”: C. J. Nitkowski and Ryan Spilborghs, “Michael King,” Loud Outs, MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM, February 3, 2023.
“We’ve got the best record in baseball”: Randy Miller, “Yankees Realize They ‘May Have to Slay the Dragon’ after Astros Win 2 More ‘Practice Tests,’ ” NJ Advance Media, July 22, 2022, https://www.nj.com/yankees/2022/07/yankees-realize-they-may-have-to-slay-the-dragon-after-astros-win-2-more-practice-tests.html
“Ultimately, we may have to slay the dragon”: Ibid.
“It’s actually really impressive to see”: Chris Kirschner, “Inside Aaron Judge’s Astonishing March to MLB, and Yankees, History, One Home Run at a Time,” The Athletic, October 4, 2022, https://theathletic.com/3615387/2022/10/04/aaron-judge-hr-chase/.
“It doesn’t help whenever you throw it down the middle to him”: Andy Kostka, “Orioles Can’t Overcome Aaron Judge’s Two Homers in 7-6 Loss to Yankees to Start Second Half of Season,” Baltimore Sun, July 22, 2022.
“After the conversation, I said”: C. J. Nitkowski and Ryan Spilborghs, “Michael King,” Loud Outs, MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM, February 3, 2023.
Chapter 9: Heroes and Ghosts
“Of course sex is natural. So is eating”: “Frank Talk on Youth and Sex,” Life, August 18, 1961.
“Ralph, what do you think about me bunting”: “Math Muscles in on the Race against Ruth,” Life, August 18, 1961.
“This is star money”: Buster Olney, “Baseball’s Shyest Superstar; Highest-Paid Yankee Still Walks Alone,” New York Times, July 15, 1999.
“For me, the first thing is”: Leadership in the Clubhouse. Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo, All Rise Foundation, January 24, 2023.
“I was always worried about getting booed”: Ryan Ruocco and CC Sabathia, “Jordan Montgomery on Being Traded to Cardinals and Finding His Stride in St. Louis,” R2C2 podcast, September 8, 2022.
“It’s not fair”: Josh Horton, “Yank Aaron! Judge Hammers HR into Orbit,” MLB.com, July 22, 2017. https://www.mlb.com/news/aaron-judge-s-homer-nearly-leaves-safeco-field-c243599652.
“If they don’t like me”: Brendan Kuty, “Yankees Fans Push It Too Far, Attack Isiah Kiner-Falefa’s Father on Twitter,” NJ Advance Media, August 15, 2022. https://www.nj.com/yankees/2022/08/yankees-fans-push-it-too-far-attack-isiah-kiner-falefas-father-on-twitter.html.
“I recognize how good of a hitter he is”: Anthony DiComo, “Scherzer’s Birthday Gift: 3 K’s of Judge,” MLB.com, July 28, 2022. https://www.mlb.com/news/starling-marte-hits-walk-off-single-for-mets-vs-yankees.
“It does get tough day after day”: Leadership in the Clubhouse. Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo, All Rise Foundation, January 24, 2023.
“I hadn’t seen the slider yet”: Matt Kawahara, “A’s, JP Sears fall 3-2 to Yankees on Aaron Judge’s Blast,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 26, 2022.
“On the replay, you get the side angles”: Leadership in the Clubhouse. Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo, All Rise Foundation, January 24, 2023.
“The stadium in Oakland”: Jake Saldate and Chad Rothford, “Jordan Ribera,” Hit or Die podcast, episode 172, September 13, 2022.
’61 Flashback: The M&M Boys
“I ran into Roger in the men’s room”: Tony Kubek and Terry Pluto, Sixty-One: The Team, the Record, the Men (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989), 93.
“I just hope both of my guys do it”: Ibid., 96.
“as though he’d stuck a red-hot poker into me”: Jane Leavy, “The Last Boy,” Grantland, October 10, 2011. https://grantland.com/features/the-last-boy/.
“I thought I had a chance”: Tony Kubek and Terry Pluto, Sixty-One: The Team, The Record, The Men (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989), 229.
“There were so many games”: Ibid., 29.
“I’ll tell you, I felt bad about what some people said”: Ibid., 25.
“That’s it. I’m through”: Ibid., 116.
“Well, this is your last shot”: Ibid., 118.
“I’d like to have it”: Roger Kahn, “Pursuit of No. 60: The Ordeal of Roger Maris,” Sports Illustrated, October 2, 1961.
Chapter 10: The Greatest Show on Dirt
“They get paid to hit, just like we get paid to pitch”: Jeff Fletcher, “Mike Mayers Allows 3 Homers in Rough Start, Ending Angels’ Winning Streak,” Orange County Register, August 30, 2022.
“He’s in a groove right now”: Ibid.
“Aaron Judge hit a home run against you”: Starter Sports Training, Twitter Post, December 29, 2022, 11:03 AM. https://twitter.com/starters_sports/status/1608493879191281670.
“extra motivation when you play”: Scott Orgera, “Correa Answers Boos with Go-Ahead HR, Twins Top Yanks 4-3,” Associated Press, September 9, 2022.
“She didn’t want to believe it”: Mel Antonen, “McGwire Details Steroid Use,” USA Today, January 11, 2011.
“The future for him as a bona fide home run hitter”: AJ Cassavell, “McGwire Congratulates Judge,” MLB.com, September 25, 2017, https://www.mlb.com/news/mark-mcgwire-congratulates-aaron-judge-c256084264.
“I truly believe he’ll break Barry’s record, too”: Bob Nightengale, “Mark McGwire Thinks Aaron Judge Will Best Bonds and Pujols Is a Lock for 700,” USA Today, September 11, 2022.
“Once he hit the home run”: Chad Jennings, “ ‘I Was in Disbelief’: Yankees’ Aaron Judge High-Fives Fan with Front Row Seat to History,” The Athletic, September 14, 2022, https://theathletic.com/3592732/2022/09/13/aaron-judge-yankees-high-five-fan/.
