Blue Jays looking into Aaron Judge’s behavior during at-bat
New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge raised some suspicions with his behavior during an at-bat on Monday night, and the Toronto Blue Jays want to take a closer look at what was going on.
Judge went 2-for-2 with two home runs and three walks in the Yankees’ 7-4 win over Toronto. Judge hit a solo home run with his team up 6-0 in the top of the eighth inning. During that at-bat, the Blue Jays’ announcers made a big deal of noting how Judge was glancing towards the Yankees’ dugout just before pitches arrived (watch here).
After the game, Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters that his team will look into Judge’s shifty eyes to make sure Toronto is “not susceptible” to tipping pitches in some way.
John Schneider on Aaron Judge:
"It’s kind of odd that a hitter would be looking in that direction. He’s obviously looking in that direction for a reason."
He says the #BlueJays will look at it further to make sure they're "not susceptible" to tendencies, locations, pitches.
— Keegan Matheson (@KeeganMatheson) May 16, 2023
“It’s kind of odd that a hitter would be looking in that direction. He’s obviously looking in that direction for a reason,” Schneider said.
There were a few different theories about what Judge may have been doing. One is that he was trying to peak behind home plate to see where the catcher was setting up. Another was that Judge could have been looking toward the Yankees’ dug or on-deck circle for a tip about the pitch that was coming or catcher’s location.
None of that was the case, according to Judge. The reigning American League MVP offered a reasonable explanation that had nothing to do with trying to gain a competitive advantage. You can’t blame the Blue Jays for making sure, though.
