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Is Aaron Judge The Next Captain Of The New York Yankees?

The year is 2013, the New York Yankees are on the clock in the first round of the 2013 MLB draft with the 32nd overall pick. The commissioner Bud Selig announces the next Yankees draft pick. They have chosen a 6 foot 7 inch 3 sports star from Fresno State University, center fielder Aaron Judge. Who would have thought that one day he would be the leading candidate to perhaps one day follow in the footsteps of Don Mattingly and future Hall of Famer Derek Jeter as captain of the most historic franchise in sports history the New York Yankees.

Three years later, on August 13, 2016, Aaron Judge made his Major League Debut and in his 1st at bat hit a gigantic homerun into monument park where ironically one day he might have a plaque himself there. The hype was real, the buzz was real, New York was envisioning the next great Yankee. What happened next tho?  The season did not go well for Judge, not only did he get hurt early into his career and missed the rest of the regular season after his call up, but, he also struggled mightily striking out 50% of the time which resulted in fans saying he was a bust and the hype was unwarranted and shattered with boos from Yankee Stadium crowds. What happened next? The arrival of Aaron Judge to the New York Yankees, their fans, and the city.

The very next season Judge won the starting RF spot over Aaron Hicks in Spring Training. What Judge would do in this season was a remarkable feat. He carried a rebuilding New York Yankees team in the 1st half of the season to a record that no one saw coming quite yet. He won the HR derby in a landslide, hitting majestic shot after shot in Miami.  He was awarded Rookie of the Year unanimously with hitting the most homeruns in MLB history by a rookie with 52, and oh yeah, he was also the runner up as the American League Most Valuable Player all in his rookie season.

Over their iconic history, The Yankees have had some amazing ballplayers from Babe Ruth, to Mickey Mantle, to Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera, but what makes Aaron Judge special isnt just his immense talent with superhuman power or the ability to hit majestic home runs, steal bases, play gold glove defense or any of those things, it’s how he represents himself and the team, much like Derek Jeter did when he was named the captain of the New York Yankees in 2003. He would go on to be the longest captain in Yankees history until he retired after the 2014 season. In my opinion, much like Derek Jeter, there’s a certain feel to Aaron Judge that you just embrace as a teammate.

You see, this is New York where fans have a love/love and hate/hate relationship. They love you when you’re performing and hate you when you’re not. That however was different for guys like Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. They both got shattered with boos at times, but there was no hate at all for them among fans. They were Yankees at heart and New Yorkers through and through. They knew how to represent the Yankees and with honor, prestige and class. Aaron Judge not only hits majestic homeruns, provides gold glove defense in RF, steals bases, helps the Yankees win ball games, but he does it much like Derek Jeter did, with pure class and always with a smile on his face and no matter what he always gave 100% whether it was a routine ground ball to 2nd base, or a homerun that travels 495 feet when he put his head down and just simply ran around the bases refusing to show up the pitcher.

Sure, this might seem like I’m putting the horse before the wagon, because Aaron Judge is only 2 seasons into his Yankee career. There’s also the belief of General Manager Brian Cashman who said that Derek Jeter should be the last ever Yankees captain.  The thing is tho, when Brian Cashman said that, did he know what he had in Aaron Judge? Did he know he had the next not only great Yankee, but most beloved one since Derek Jeter? At the ripe age of 25, Aaron Judge  has the ability to even get better as he’s still 4 years away from his prime baseball years. New York is clearly behind the gentle giant, there is a Judge’s chamber in Right Field at Yankee Stadium because he is so adored by fans and the Yankees, and if he continues to improve even more then one day, like Don Mattingly and future Hall of Famer Derek Jeter, New York wont just be saying “all rise the Judge is in session, no, they’ll simply be calling him Aaron Judge, captain of the New York Yankees.

Top 10 NFL Mock Draft.

  1. Cleveland Browns –  QB Sam Darnold. Yes its true that GM John Dorsey loves his big arm QBs, he traded up last year and took QB Patrick Mahomes because of his big arm. I think in the end tho, Dorsey goes with who most believe will be the best QB in this class even if maybe Josh Allen has the highest ceiling.

2. New York Giants – RB Saquon Barkley. The New York Giants are the Wild card here and could change the direction of the 1st round if they go QB here. They could also go Bradley Chubb the DE from NC State. In the end tho, the Giants pass on the QBs and Chubb and go for the highest player on their board and best talent in the entire draft in Barkley and gives Eli Manning that dynamic RB he has never had before along with Odell Beckham JR.

3. New York Jets – QB Josh Allen. I’ve heard the rumors here time and time again about how much the Jets love Baker Mayfield, but I think that has to do with the belief that the Browns are taking Josh Allen at #1. Josh Allen is a guy with a big arm who has played in cold temperatures before, and while his accuracy has been an issue he perhaps has the highest upside in the draft because of his physical tools.

4. Cleveland Browns – DE Bradley Chubb.. With the Giants taking Barkley at 2, the Browns go for Chubb and put him on the opposite end of Myles Garrett in hopes that they can develop a pass rush that will making opposing QBs fear playing the Browns.

5. Denver Broncos –  G Quenton Nelson.  While the Broncos will be tempted here to take perhaps their future QB in either Baker Mayfield or Josh Rosen, the Broncos ultimately stick to their plan to try to win now and go with Case Keenum who played pretty well for the Vikings and add a potential hall of fame lineman in Nelson.

6. Buffalo Bills via Indianapolis Colts – QB Baker Mayfield. The Colts are unable to get 2 of their top targets in Bradley Chubb or Quenton Nelson after trading the #3 pick to the NY Jets so they opt to trade down again and Buffalo takes what they hope is their next franchise QB while the Colts collect the Bills 2 first round picks.

7.  Tampa Bay Buccaneers – CB Minkah Fitzpatrick.. With Barkley going to the Giants at 2, the Bucs opt for what some consider the best overall defensive player in the draft and for sure the best CB in the draft.

8. Miami Dolphins via the Chicago Bears  QB Josh Rosen- With Quenton Nelson already gone there goes the Bears chance to replace Sitton at their hole at guard. If Nelson were to be there, the Bears would absolutely take him to help protect QB Mitch Trubisky.. In this mock, he is not there so the Bears opt to trade down 3 spots with Miami.  Dolphins take what they hope is their next franchise QB in Josh Rosen who should have no problem going from California to florida weather and producing.

9. San Francisco 49ers – LB Roquan Smith.  The 49ers might be losing last years late 1st round pick Rueben foster due to problems with the law, and even if they don’t, can they really trust that guy to stay healthy?.. The pick here for the 49ers is Smith.

10. Oakland Raiders – LB Trumane Edmunds.  Roquan Smith has been mocked to the Raiders almost in every draft I’ve seen, the Raiders badly need help on the defensive side of the ball, with Smith going to the 49ers, the Raiders take the next and perhaps best LB in the hole draft in Edmunds.