World Series matchup could be just what Aaron Judge needs to snap out of his playoff funk

The one fly in the ointment on the New York Yankees' way to their first American League pennant since 2009 has been the continued struggles of Aaron Judge. While Gleyber Torres (.832 OPS), Juan Soto (1.106 OPS with three homers, including the game-winner in Game 5 of the ALCS) and Giancarlo Stanton (1.179 OPS with five homers, each seemingly bigger than the last) have put New York's offense on their backs, Judge has been the odd man out, slumping through another quiet postseason in a career that's becoming full of them.

It seemed like the soon-to-be two-time AL MVP may have turned the corner in Game 3 against the Cleveland Guardians, delivering a massive game-tying homer off All-Star closer Emmanuel Clase in the top of the eighth inning. But reports of Judge's resurgence turned out to be premature: He went 1-for-8 with four strikeouts across Games 4 and 5, lowering his slash line in these playoffs to .161/ .317/.387. Judge has put up some of the best numbers we've ever seen from a right-handed hitter, and he says and does all the right things as New York's captain and clubhouse leader. If he doesn't come through when it matters, most, though, none of the above is going to matter much when it comes to his Yankees legacy.

There's some good news on that front, however. The Yankees are set to square off against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, the first of Judge's career. And if ever there were a matchup to get No. 99 out of his slump, this is it.

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Aaron Judge has owned the Dodgers throughout his career

Actually, that might even be an understatement. Judge hasn't played Los Angeles all that often over his eight-plus seasons with the Yankees, but he's absolutely killed the Dodgers whenever they've crossed paths. Judge is slashing a whopping .389/.463/1.111 in 10 career games against L.A., good for a 1.575 OPS — his highest against any individual opponent he's played at least 10 times. Across the two teams' most recent meeting, a three-game set at Yankee Stadium back in early June, Judge went 7-for-11 with three home runs, three walks and two doubles, including a two-homer effort on June 8 and an upper-deck shot to key a 6-4 Yankee win on June 9.

No matter what they've tried, Dave Roberts and Co. haven't been able to find a way to keep Judge in check. And with Torres and Soto getting on in front of him and Stanton locked in behind him, the odds are good that the Dodgers will have no choice but to attack Judge during this series (we already saw Guardians manager Stephen Vogt walk Soto to get to Judge in the ALCS). Judge has been out of sorts all postseason long, missing pitches he usually hits and seemingly caught in between with his timing. But his teammates bailed him out, and now he has the chance to repay them with a huge World Series against a team he's all too comfortable with. (And hey, you know Judge would like to get some revenge on Dodger Stadium after last year's collision with the outfield fence.)