Since his debut in 2016, Aaron Judge has frequently made updates to the annals of baseball history. In 2017, the Yankees’ premier slugger set the rookie record for home runs with 52; a record that was lost to Pete Alonso in 2019. In 2022, Judge hit 62 home runs to break the AL home run record set by Roger Maris (61) in 1961. The very next year, he became the fastest player to hit 300 home runs.
This season, Judge set another home run record, albeit one he already broke last year. On his 1000th game, Judge blasted his 321st home run. With his 1000th game behind him, Judge was able to claim the record for most home runs in his first thousand games.
Now, Judge is chasing a new record. However, this one isn’t what anybody expected from him?
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Aaron Judge is keeping his batting average above .400
Among other home run-related pursuits such as the all-time home run crown or the single-season record, both owned by Barry Bonds, Judge’s latest pursuit has nothing to do with home runs. With a month of baseball behind us, Judge is hitting for an average of .415 entering Friday.
Hitting .400 in a full season is a pursuit more befitting of Luis Arraez or Steven Kwan. Fans likely didn’t expect Judge to be chasing the mythical mark. But as things stand, Judge is the only player currently hitting above .400, towering over Paul Goldschmidt’s .383 average which is the MLB’s second-best mark thus far in 2025.
In the history of the sport, only elite hitters during the turn of the 20th century were able to surmount such a feat. But as the early 1900’s faded from view, so did the .400 mark. In 1941, Ted Williams became the last player to enter the legendary .400 club, going 6-for-8 in the final two games of the season, finishing with a .406 batting average. Since then, Tony Gwynn’s .394 average in the strike-shortened 1994 season has been the closest any player has come to reaching the mark followed closely by George Brett’s .390 in 1980.
In modern times, baseball fans are only treated to such high batting averages early in seasons. Pitchers continually work on new offerings and deceptive deliveries which when coupled with the velocities that are common today, have gradually been eating away at opponent batting averages. Last season’s cumulative MLB batting average stood at a meager .238, the second lowest average in MLB history. The question now is: can Judge keep it up?
Realistically, the odds are against him. But let’s keep our fingers crossed and hope the best hitter in the game can give us fans an unexpected thrill.