LOS ANGELES – When Aaron Judge The best version of himself, the version that has been tormenting pitchers all summer with a tear not seen since the prime of Barry Bonds, is demolishing a 2-0 fastball. Yoshinobu Yamamoto He pitched it in the sixth inning of the New York Yankees’ 4-2 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 of the World Series on Saturday.

The 94 mph offering was up the middle in the bottom half of the strike zone, ripe for Judge to feast on. But the Judge did not feast. It didn’t even shake. Instead, it was called a strike.

“When we’re doing well we can usually shoot for it,” Judge said.

The umpire called a foul on the next pitch, a curveball that he usually swallowed. Then came the knockout punch: a splitter that flew under his hands. Judge took the third shot and missed; This was an alarmingly common outcome for Judge and the Yankees in October.

The presumptive American League MVP went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts on Saturday as the Yankees dug a 2-0 hole in the series. He is 1-for-9 with six strikeouts in the World Series. He is 6-for-40 (.150) with 19 goals in 50 postseason games.

Simply put, the playoff struggles that had fans booing after the historic 62-point streak in 2022 have spilled over into 2024.

“I guess it’s just about swinging at bats, getting a shot to drive,” Judge said. “There’s no field you can use, don’t try to do anything there. It’s the postseason. Guys are going to make their field. They’re going to field you hard, so I need to calm down a little bit more.” and that’s what getting the job done depends on, and I’m not doing that right now.”

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Judge expanded the strike zone; He believes this problem stems from Judge not putting himself in a position to make good batting decisions. In other words, his timing is off. Judge said he was “getting close” to fixing his mechanics.

He said his struggles in October were “somewhat similar” to his struggles to start the season, when he hit .197/.331/.393 with 40 strikeouts in 149 games through May 2. He went 4-to-1 in May. 3 began a torrid 125-game stretch in which he batted .357 with 52 home runs and a 1.279 OPS to end the regular season.

“When you have a guy like that, that good of a guy, I think it’s only going to take one hit to get him going,” the Yankees right fielder said. Juan SotoIn the second game, the score was 4 to 2.

Yankees coach James Rowson said Judge was “doing well right now. He’s there. He’s giving it everything he’s got.” he said. He also noted the human element in Judge, who played in his first World Series.

“More than anything, this is where we are and you want to do something,” Rowson said. “So sometimes you get a little anxious and your mentality is trying to do a little bit more than normal. We have three home games (next). I think the homecoming will be good for him.”

Yankees third baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr.. He echoed Rowson’s opinion.

“We’re all a little worried, you know?” said Chisholm, who also played in his first World Series. “It’s the first two games of the World Series in our career, so you’re going to go out there a little bit anxious. I feel like when we get home, he’ll feel more confident and calm down a little bit, going into his home crowd.”

The referee has whiffed 32 of his 59 strikes (54%) in the last five games; That’s a surprising clip for someone who leads the majors in home runs, RBIs, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS, and wRC+. 31% of their swings. He had 13 strikeouts over the five-game stretch; that was the most in any five-game stretch since June 2021.

Judge hit the bat in back-to-back games against the Cleveland Guardians during the American League Championship Series, including a two-run shot against the All-Star closer. Emmanuel Clase In Game 3. Other than that, he has one double, three singles and seven walks in the postseason.

Meanwhile, Giancarlo StantonHe has six homers and a 1.098 OPS in October, hitting a two-run home run in Game 1. Soto, who took the starting pitch in Game 5 of the ALCS to send the Yankees to the World Series, is batting .350 with four home runs and a 1.160 OPS in the playoffs. They sparked the Yankees’ postseason run.

The Yankees now expect Judge, the third member of the slugging trio, to get back on track, throwing 2-0 fastballs and impacting games. Those around Judge are confident he will do it. Championship hopes depend on it.

“He’ll help us win some games here,” Stanton said.