Aaron Judge didn’t take the field Thursday night, but he had a front-row seat for Rafael Devers’ return — and shot the Red Sox slugger high praise following a 6-5 Yankees win.
Devers, who leads the American League in third base All-Star voting, went 2-for-3 with two home runs and five RBIs, further adding to his dominance at the plate against Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole.
After the game, Judge expressed his respects for what he, and all of Fenway Park, had witnessed.
“It just speaks volumes to what type of player he is and what he can do, man,” Judge told NBC Sports Boston. “It’s been fun watching him from afar. I usually like watching him more on TV than when he’s facing us, but he’s a special talent. It’s fun to see him develop over the years.”
It wouldn’t be surprising to see Devers and Judge battle it out for the AL MVP award this season.
It’s also worth mentioning Devers sits second all-time among Red Sox hitters in total home runs hit against the Yankees (age 25 or younger). He currently has 15 — three ahead of Babe Ruth and five behind Ted Williams — as pointed out by J.P. Long on Twitter.
As far as the Cole versus Devers battles? Well, the numbers continue to speak for themselves. Devers now is 7-for-23 (.304) with six home runs and 15 RBIs in his career against Cole.
The Red Sox hope Devers can deliver some of Thursday night’s power in Game 2 of the series as Boston looks to overcome back-to-back losses against AL East opponents. Friday night’s game against the Yankees starts at 7:10 p.m. ET. NESN pregame coverage begins at 5:30 p.m.
