Aaron Judge says Yankees were motivated to beat Royals after missing playoffs last year

The New York Yankees beat the Kansas City Royals 3-1 on Thursday to advance to the ALCS. It was a moment of intense celebration in the locker room, as New York kept its magical season full steam ahead. Now the winner of Guardians-Tigers Game 5 will travel to the Bronx in a bid to represent the American League in the World Series.

For the Yankees and their fans, this has been a long but worthwhile season. After missing the playoffs entirely in 2023, New York was able to trade for Juan Soto and immediately climb back up the AL East standings. Baltimore's late-season collapse paved the way for New York to claim the No. 1 seed, while the MVP-level outputs of Aaron Judge and Soto kept New York's offense afloat through various cold spells and missteps all season.

Now the Yankees are translating their success to October, and Thursday's victory was a prime example of what makes this team so special. Gerrit Cole went seven innings deep, allowing just one run on less than 90 pitches. Meanwhile, the top half of the lineup was unbelievable. Gleyber Torres and Giancarlo Stanton both whacked a couple hits, Judge found his way on base three times, and Soto picked up a useful RBI. There was simply too much talent for Kansas City to overcome.

This victory held special meaning for Judge and for the Yankees at large, too. Not only was it New York beating a longstanding rival, but it was also a poetic response to last season's disappointment.

"I think what fuels us more is in '23 our season ended here," Judge said. "No postseason, no playoffs, no nothing, just go home and get ready for the next season. I think a lot of guys took that to heart. There's a video out there of quite a few guys just sitting in the dugout watching the field, soaking it all in. I think that's what fueled a lot of guys to go out there and say, 'Hey, I don't want to have this feeling again.'"

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Aaron Judge says disappointing finish to 2023 season fueled ALDS win over Royals

Credit for Judge for the sharp memory. Every great athlete stocks bulletin-board material — any sliver of motivation one can find to bring out the best possible performance. This is peak athlete brain. 'Our season ended in Kansas City last year, so we were motivated to finish off the Royals this year.' Zero notes. Great stuff.

Obviously the Yankees' 2023 woes extended far beyond a regular season series in Kansas City that saw New York fumble its last postseason hopes away. But, there is an admirable bit of sports poetry to how Judge is framing this. Roughly a year removed from abject disappointment at Kaufman Stadium, the Yankees are one step closer to their ultimate goal after a compelling victory.

New York stole both ALDS games in Kansas City to close out this series and cut off the water on this magic Royals season. All four games were close, but the Yanks just found ways to edge the Royals out, in large part due to their firepower on offense.

This wasn't even a great series for Judge individually, as he recorded just one hit (a single) in the first three games combined, but he came through with a double, two walks, and a stolen base in Thursday's closeout game. New York's success through Judge's struggles is a testament to the collective effort that team gave, and it has to be a positive sign for the Yankees moving forward. Odds are, Judge has better days (and series) ahead.