Yankees may have found their Aaron Judge replacement and his first home run proved it

yankees/news/yankees-may-have-found-their-aaron-judge-replacement-and-his-first-home-run-proved-it/fb463e115cfa47d7e5743576?utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=appeared_on">Yankees may have found their Aaron Judge replacement and his first home run proved it originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The New York Yankees have spent the past several weeks trying to answer one uncomfortable question:

How do you survive without Aaron Judge?

On Tuesday night in Cleveland, they may have gotten their most encouraging answer yet. Spencer Jones, one of the organization’s most intriguing prospects, launched the first home run of his major league career during the Yankees’ 3-2 victory over the Guardians. And it wasn’t just a home run.

It was the kind of blast that immediately had people mentioning Judge. The 25-year-old crushed a cutter from Cleveland starter Slade Cecconi 443 feet to dead center field with an exit velocity of 112.2 mph, producing one of the most impressive swings by a Yankees rookie in years.

Even Yankees manager Aaron Boone could hardly believe what he saw.

“That’s a line drive to center for most people,” Boone said afterward.

Jazz Chisholm said what every Yankees fan was thinking

The reaction from the Yankees dugout may have been even better than the home run itself. Standing on first base when Jones connected, Jazz Chisholm Jr. admitted his first thought was simple.

“I thought it was Aaron Judge who hit that,” Chisholm said with a smile.

That’s about as big a compliment as a young Yankees hitter can receive. The numbers back it up.

Jones’ blast was the third-longest home run by a Yankees player this season, trailing only Judge’s 456-foot shot and Giancarlo Stanton’s 446-footer. It was also the longest home run hit at Progressive Field all season. For a franchise built around power, Jones instantly placed himself in elite company.

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The timing couldn’t be better for New York

What made the moment even more significant was when it happened. The Yankees are currently navigating life without Judge, who is sidelined with a stress fracture in his right rib. While veterans such as Paul Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger have helped keep the offense afloat, New York desperately needs another impact bat to emerge.

That’s where Jones enters the picture. The former first-round pick has always possessed massive power. He hit 85 home runs throughout his minor league career and launched 13 more in just 43 Triple-A games this season.

The concern has never been power.

It’s been contact. Jones entered Tuesday’s game having struck out in nearly half of his major league at-bats. The raw tools were obvious, but the consistency remained a question.

For one swing, at least, none of that mattered.

A glimpse of what the Yankees have been waiting for

Jones finished the night 2-for-4 and helped power New York to its second straight win over Cleveland. More importantly, he gave Yankees fans a glimpse of why the organization has remained so patient with his development. The home run wasn’t just his first in the majors.

It was the hardest-hit first career home run by a Yankees player in the Statcast era and one of the longest first career homers in franchise history since tracking began. The Yankees know nobody can replace Aaron Judge.

But after watching Jones send a baseball 443 feet into the Cleveland night, it’s easy to understand why people inside the organization believe he can help soften the blow.

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