Aaron Judge awakened, but in the end, it turned out not to be enough.
The Yankees slugger belted his first home run of the postseason in the third inning of the Bombers’ crushing 6-5 loss to the Guardians on Saturday night in Game 3 of the American League Division Series in Cleveland.
But at the time, Judge blast was a big one.
The two-run shot, which drove in Oswaldo Cabrera who doubled earlier in the game, tied the game at 2-2. Judge, who is hitting second in the order or the first time in these playoffs, struck out in his first at-bat. He finished the night 1-for-4 with a strikeout.
Judge, who will soon be a free-agent, went 0-for-5 in Game 2 with four strikeouts, and was 0-for-8 with seven strikeouts and a walk through the first two postseason games. Plus, he heard some booing during Game 2.
As for the Yankees’ revised Game 3 lineup, Gleyber Torres is hitting first and Anthony Rizzo is the No. 3 hole behind Judge.
Before the game, Boone explained the reason for moving Judge back into the No. 2 hole, where he had been earlier in the regular season.
“I just woke up on it and just not to have all the focus on the first at-bat of the game, so he can settle in … and get him in the two-hole for a minute,’’ Boone said, referring to the decision. “And we feel more whole [with the lineup] than even 10 days ago.”