Judge Fantasy Managers: Meet Your Spirit Animal
Aaron Judge hits balls hard. He also likes hitting dingers.
Yesterday, Judge had his first multi-HR game of the season. While his first bomb was just a casual 436 ft laser off the batter’s eye in center, his second blast was a high, arching grand salami to the second deck.
AARON JUDGE GRAND SLAM, HIS SECOND HOMER OF THE NIGHT pic.twitter.com/4Y5AEm1Qyf
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) May 1, 2021
Did you see that one fan who forgot how his legs worked?
Aaron Judge managers in one GIF pic.twitter.com/MKjBIMeUXM
— Nick Pollack (@PitcherList) May 1, 2021
Yeah, if I managed Judge in my fantasy leagues, that’s exactly how I would’ve reacted after Friday.
Joey Votto’s High School Revival: Part 2
Joey Votto doesn’t want your attention. Even on nights when he makes history by becoming the third Reds player to reach 300 career home runs with the team. Rather, Votto wants you to pay attention to his teammate’s high school jerseys.
A couple of weeks ago, Votto wore Kyle Farmer’s old football jersey as a reminder that Farmer was once a high school quarterback with a cameo in “The Blind Side.” After yesterday’s game, Votto paid homage to Sonny Gray by wearing a jersey from Smyrna High School, where Gray led the school to state championships in 2006 and 2007.
Votto showing off the guns in Sonny Gray's high school jersey 💪 pic.twitter.com/WLQNwYlyp7
— Bally Sports Cincinnati (@BallySportsCIN) May 1, 2021
Personally, I would’ve loved to see Votto represent Gray by recreating his performance as Troy Bolton in Smyrna’s High School Musical.
Run Maldonado, Run! Or Whatever That Is!
Martín Maldonado is not a fast man. His 2021 sprint speed is the fourth slowest (22.9 ft/sec) in all of baseball, behind Pujols, Yadi, and Grandal. Before yesterday, Maldonado had reached base 493 times across 2567 career PAs. He had just three triples and three stolen bases.
But on Friday, a miracle happened. Maldonado ripped a ball down the line in Tropicana Field that strangely careened off the outfield wall, allowing him to record his fourth career triple.
Machete with the wheels 👀#ForTheH pic.twitter.com/B8B1adtm2P
— Houston Astros (@astros) May 1, 2021
His running just happened to catch Carlos Correa’s eye.
https://gfycat.com/defiantspicyhectorsdolphin
You be the judge. How accurate was Correa’s impression?
Carlos Correa (@TeamCJCorrea) with his impression of Maldonado (@Machete1224) legging out a triple 🤣 pic.twitter.com/aNYxliUe7B
— APOLLO MEDIA (@ApolloHOU) May 1, 2021
Juuuuuuust a bit high…
You often see hitters make a splash at PNC Park by trying to smack the ball into the Allegheny River. But on Friday, John Gant did something different. He tried throwing a ball into Ohio.
https://gfycat.com/unlawfulweedoe
I think that ball may have traveled all the way back to St. Louis…
Not even Vladimir Guerrero Sr. could hit that pitch. All Jacob Stallings could do was smile as he watched it fly by.
https://gfycat.com/tallactivearcticduck
McCutchen’s Fancy Footwork
Andrew McCutchen has caught a lot of fly balls in his career. Few batters can regularly hit pitches 110+ MPH like Pete Alonso. So when Alonso lasered a 113.9 MPH liner—the hardest-hit ball of the entire Mets vs. Phillies game—it caught McCutchen off guard.
this ball caught Cutch 😳 pic.twitter.com/i2yZIGN9UY
— Cut4 (@Cut4) April 30, 2021
A Cotton Candy Web Gem
Last Friday, a young fan became the star of baseball’s highlight reel as he outplayed Kole Calhoun for a foul ball. Yesterday, we saw another clean catch in the stands by an Athletics vendor who played a ricochet as smooth as Matt Chapman.
https://gfycat.com/unhappyshimmeringflyingfox
One-handed, all while carrying a bushel of cotton candy. How does Oakland keep churning out Gold Glovers literally everywhere?
Photo by Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns of Twitter)