Aaron Judge makes feelings known on facing Rangers star Jacob deGrom in latest outing

Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees negated a gem from Texas Rangers ace Jacob deGrom for a come-from-behind 4-3 win at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday.

Jacob deGrom, a former New York Mets pitcher, was at his sublime best in his first start in the Bronx since Aug. 13, 2018. The two-time Cy Young winner with the Mets went seven strong innings, allowing two earned runs over four hits while striking out nine Yankees hitters.

The veteran ace exited the game after seven innings with the Rangers leading 3-2. However, the Yankees rallied in the eighth and ninth to undo deGrom's stellar outing. Yankees captain Aaron Judge, who tied the game with an RBI single in the eighth, reflected on his battle against the Rangers star.

"Like I said, he is one of the greatest pitchers of our generation. Getting a chance to battle him like that, I enjoy nights like this going up against the best. It was a mutual respect head nod of 'alright, see you next round; "

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Jacob deGrom underwent Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career last September. Wednesday was the first time the All-Star ace went more than 100 pitches since the surgery.

Jasson Dominguez, Aaron Judge ruin Jacob deGrom's pitching gem

While Jacob deGrom would've hoped for a win after his longest pitching outing in 13 starts, the Yankees had other ideas. Reigning AL MVP Aaron Judge tied the game in the eighth before rising star Jasson Dominguez walked it off with a solo home run to seal the win in the ninth.

The Yankees trusted the 22-year-old as the team's everyday left fielder at the start of the season and the decision is paying off for the Bronx Bombers. After Dominguez became the fourth youngest Yankee to blast a walk-off homer, manager Aaron Boone said:

“He’s just not affected by great results or a struggling day. He just puts a smile on his face, goes to work and likes playing the game with his teammates. He’s really easy and fun to be around. But you’re really starting to see just how good a talent — you see him run, you see the speed, you see the power.”

Wednesday's win helped the Yankees to another series victory, their fifth on the trot, and they will look to keep the winning momentum by sweeping the Rangers in Thursday's finale.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash