In 2022, Major League Baseball fans witnessed one of the greatest seasons in the history of the sport when New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge hit 62 home runs. Now, less than a year after Judge’s 62nd home run sailed over the left-field fence at Texas’ Globe Life Field, fans can learn about that home run, the 61 that came before it, and what led up to the historic season.
Bryan Hoch, who covers the Yankees for MLB.com, penned 62: Aaron Judge, the New York Yankees, and the Pursuit of Greatness, which takes a deep look into Judge’s fantastic season.
With a book like this, there’s a concern — or at least, a curiosity — about how the story will be told.
One way is a heavy (and in this case, quite literal) “inside baseball” approach. To dissect each home run, as well as the evolution of Judge’s swing, and answer how he hit 62 home runs in the most technical way possible. Hoch does that. We learn about every home run. Where it was hit, what was the game situation, who it was hit against, what was the launch angle, exit velocity, how far did it go, and how many parks would it have been a home run in.
The baseball nerd will love that. The more casual fans probably will not. Fortunately, there’s plenty for them, as well.
We also learn about Judge the person.
While the state of California is a baseball hotbed, the small San Joaquin Valley town of Linden is not. So, how did Judge go from a town of less than 2,000 people to the best player on the most high-profile team in Major League Baseball? We learn that.
Hoch covers lessons that Judge learned that helped him develop into the player, teammate, and person that he is. That includes living with Brett Gardner and his family as a rookie, as well as what it can mean to a kid in the stands for Judge to do something as simple as make eye contact or give a slight wave.
It also looks into a lot of the drama that hit Judge and the Yankees during the season.
From Judge’s perspective, there was a lingering arbitration hearing. More than that, there was the fact that 2022 was a contract year. There was drama between Judge and the Yankees early on when Judge decided to bet on himself and turn down an offer that the Yankees made just before the season. New York general manager Brian Cashman then made that offer public. And that all happened well before 62 home runs was considered a realistic possibility.
There was team drama, as well.
On the surface, it may not seem like a whole lot. Sure, the playoffs were disappointing for the Yankees, who barely snuck past the Cleveland Guardians in the divisional round before being swept by the Astros in the Championship Series. But the season itself seemed drama free, as the Yankees went 99-63 to win the American League East by seven games. What drama could there be?
In fact, there was a lot of it.
There was a near fight between Yankees fans and Guardians outfielders during the regular season series in the Bronx. There was the tense situation between Yankees third baseman Josh Donaldson and Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson, which had a racial undertone with Donaldson calling Anderson “Jackie.” And while Hoch does adequately detail where Donaldson was coming from, he also adequately and mindfully represents the detractors.
Finally, as a fan of not only modern baseball but baseball history, I enjoyed reading the stories about Babe Ruth’s 60-home run season in 1927 and Roger Maris hitting 61 in 1961. Because to truly appreciate how a record was set, it helps to know how it got to what it was. And the fact that like Judge, Ruth and Maris were not only both Yankees, but Yankees right fielders, makes the connection even stronger.
Even the most serious fans would have to concede that at times, a baseball season can drag. The regular season is 162 games long and covers six months. That, plus the fact that every team is pretty much guaranteed 50 wins and 50 losses makes some feeling of drag inevitable.
That said, Hoch’s look into Judge’s history-making season did not drag, but it also did not skip on details. There may be sections that the more casual fans kind of find themselves skimming through, but there’s plenty around those sections to ensure that most people reading it will find plenty that interests them.
