ANAHEIM, Calif. — Mike Batesole made the drive south from Fresno, Calif., to Anaheim on Friday to see one of his pupils play in the major leagues for the first time.
“Whenever one of your former players makes it there, a tiny piece of you feels like you made it, too,’’ Batesole, the Fresno State head coach, said of Yankees rookie Aaron Judge.
Though Batesole’s own playing career “petered out at Double-A” with the Dodgers two decades ago, he has an idea of some of the challenges ahead of Judge — both on and off the field.
“I went to high school with Lenny Dykstra and I played on the same [scout league] team with Darryl Strawberry,” said Batesole, who grew up in Southern California. “What scares me about all this is New York. There are so many temptations. Aaron has a great support system, but those first years can be tough for anyone.”
So far, Judge hasn’t looked to be overwhelmed by anything. Though he suffered through his first 0-for-5 night in the majors on Friday night at Angel Stadium, he bounced back with a 1-for-3 performance with two RBIs Saturday in the Yankees’ 5-1 victory.
“He’s got a solid foundation, but we’ve seen guys with good character go the wrong way,” Batesole said. “It’s scary.”
For now, the focus is on the field and Judge hasn’t taken long to make an impression. In his first at-bat in the majors, Judge didn’t just homer, he became just the third player — and first Yankee — to reach the batter’s eye beyond center field at Yankee Stadium.
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He homered again the next day. It wasn’t the first time Judge has wasted little time making his presence felt.
Corey Ragsdale is now the field coordinator for the Rangers. Two years ago, he was managing in the Sally League with Single-A Hickory.
In three games in May against Charleston, the Yankees’ Single-A affiliate in the league, Judge went 0-for-7 against Hickory.
A week later, the teams met again in Hickory and this time, Judge collected nine hits — including two doubles and a pair of homers.
“Unfortunately, I do remember that,” Ragsdale said. “The first thing you notice is the size. But he also hit the ball hard and it went a long way consistently. It didn’t take long for us to find out what he could do.”
And as teams are finding out, Judge is capable of going the other way.
“What really stood out was the power he had to the opposite field,’’ Ragsdale said. “We’ve drafted big, athletic players here. I managed Joey Gallo. You see the strength, so you always dream about what they can be. You want to follow them and see what happens.”
Batesole, despite his confidence in his former star, knows there will be growing pains at the plate as pitchers adjust and find holes in the swing of the 6-foot-7 Judge. There are indications of that already, with Judge fanning twice in three straight games heading into Saturday’s game against the Angels.
But Batesole also said he believes Judge can hit 40 homers for the Yankees in the coming years.
“He’s made for Yankee Stadium because of that opposite-field strength,’’ Batesole said.
And like manager Joe Girardi, Batesole sees Judge as a good defensive outfielder, something he first realized when he had his team play touch football during the fall season and noticed that no one could keep up with Judge.
“They couldn’t touch him,” Batesole said. “That’s when I realized how agile he was and put him in center.”
The Yankees will keep him in right field for now — and hope he lives up to expectations at the plate.