Does Aaron Judge keep two pieces of gum in his mouth through the first at-bat?

Aaron Judge has been one of the best hitters in baseball since entering the league as a rookie in 2017 (he played briefly at the end of 2016, but his rookie year was the following year). His 36.2 fWAR is the most in that time, despite missing time with injuries.

His 166 wRC+ over that period is second only to Mike Trout. He's simply been an elite hitter from the moment he debuted in the league.

There are a lot of reasons why. He's an incredible athlete, which helps. He is one of the biggest and strongest players in baseball, which also can't hurt. He also has a really good swing.

However, according to him, one superstition perhaps helps him perform better. He revealed as much in a 2017 interview.

"I got a little thing with gum, to be honest. Right when I go out to the field to pre-game stretch, I put two pieces of gum in my mouth. I keep that through my first at-bat."

Judge continued:

"So, in my first at-bat, if I come up and fly out, those two pieces are gone and I start with two new pieces for my next at-bat. I kind of keep going and going like that."

He added:

"Hopefully, by the end of the day, I got the same piece I had pre-game that's old and has no more flavor. It's just something weird I've always done."

Perhaps it helped keep Judge focused enough to blast 62 home runs last season. Wherever he plays next season, that team will hope he keeps up the gum habit.

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What will Aaron Judge's new contract look like?

The expected annual value of Aaron Judge's next contract is expected to reach nearly $40 million. He has parlayed an MVP season into a potentially massive contract.

Division Series - New York Yankees v Cleveland Guardians - Game Four

However, some team, perhaps the San Francisco Giants, could offer more to try and entice him to join them as opposed to returning to the New York Yankees.

There could very well be a bidding war and his contract could even go higher than that.