Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo changed his walk up song to Taylor Swift’s “…Ready For It?” and immediately had a slump-busting performance.
Taylor Swift isn’t just saving the economy. She may have just saved the Yankees too.
Without Aaron Judge, New York’s offense has fallen off a cliff. That’s partially thanks to slumps for half the lineup, including Anthony Rizzo.
Since Judge’s injury at the beginning of June, Rizzo was batting .159/.275/.197. He hadn’t hit a home run since May 20.
He finally broke through on Sunday with a one-run homer in the third inning. That was one of four hits he had on the day in four at-bats.
Is it just a coincidence that Rizzo happened to change his walk-up song to Taylor Swift’s “…Ready For It?” just before he went 4-for-4 with a home run?
"Taylor Swift... It's her summer, really. She's helping the economy in every city she goes."- Anthony Rizzo.
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 23, 2023
Rizzo changed his walk-up song to Taylor Swift's "...Ready For It?" and went 4-for-4 with a homer. pic.twitter.com/qNIcjW5u8R
Taylor Swift walk-up song sparked Anthony Rizzo
It really has been the summer of Taylor Swift, whose Era’s tour has drawn has created a frenzy across the globe.
It has not been the summer of the Yankees though. They plummeted to the bottom of the AL East, fired their hitting coach and have looked exposed as a one-man team solely depending on Judge’s brilliance.
Getting Rizzo’s bat back up to speed would be a major sign towards actual competitiveness this season.
Sunday’s outing coincided with a series sweep of the Royals. They may be a bottom feeder this year but a sweep is a sweep. New York hadn’t managed one since May against the Reds. It was only their third of the season.
The Yankees started the second half of the season 1-5, suffering a sweep at the hands of the Angels. This sweep of the Royals is a step in the right direction, even if NY has a long way to go before fans start to feel good about this season. Rizzo’s 4-for-4 Sunday was also just a step. But it was a big one. And Taylor Swift some of the credit.