PHILADELPHIA — Before the Yankees began their highly-anticipated series against the first-place Phillies on Monday, the conversation surrounding Jazz Chisholm Jr. focused more on his glove than his bat.
With the experienced center fielder and second baseman playing third base for the first time as a pro, Aaron Boone explained why he feels the 26-year-old can learn the hot corner on the fly.
“Special athlete,” the manager said before the opener. “This is a guy that came up as a shortstop. So I feel like he has all the skills and ability to be able to handle it.”
Chisholm supported that theory in his second game with the Yankees, playing third without incident in an 14-4 win. He even started a double play on his first attempt at the hot corner before stating that he felt “really comfortable” at the new position.
However, Chisholm’s biggest impact came at the plate, as he hit his first two homers as a Yankee on Monday. The first saw him smack a solo shot the other way off Phillies ace Zack Wheeler in the second inning. Just as he often did with the Marlins, Chisholm finished his trot around the bases with a signature Euro step.
Ya like Jazz? pic.twitter.com/1eZuOsT3iZ
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) July 29, 2024
“He’s electric, and he’s excited to be here,” Aaron Judge said. “He’s having fun. So he’s definitely making a big impact so far.”
Chisholm’s second homer came under looser circ*mstances, as he cranked a two-run homer off position player Garrett Stubbs in the final frame. With the game out of hand, Chisholm used Judge’s bat, which produced the 38th and 39th homers of the captain’s season earlier in the game.
“That was all him. He was holding it, taking some practice swings and kind of looked at me,” Judge said. “I said, ‘Go for it. Just make sure you use it,’ and he definitely did. So I think I get half a homer for that one.”
Chisholm had one caveat regarding that idea.
“He could get a half, but I gotta get a full one still,” he said.
Despite having success with Judge’s lumber, Chisholm doesn’t plan on swinging it again soon.
“Definitely not gonna use that again tomorrow,” the lefty batter said with a laugh. “That bat was so heavy! I don’t think I ever got a hit against a position player until tonight. And I was like, ‘You know what, cap? I’m either gonna go up there right-handed or I’m gonna go use your bat. He’s like, ‘Go ahead. Use my bat.’ It worked.”
Jazz used Aaron Judge's bat? Lmao pic.twitter.com/pwsXmODhY8
— Dillard Barnhart (@BarnHasSpoken2) July 30, 2024
Boone was impressed with Chisholm homering with a heavier bat, though Judge’s evening — and overall numbers — wowed the skipper more.
With a 406-foot solo shot off Wheeler in the first and a 430-foot, two-run moonshot off Yunior Marte in the seventh, Judge now has 99 RBI, a .315 average and a 1.142 OPS to go along with his 39 bombs before the trade deadline.
Only his average doesn’t lead the majors.
“I told him I had 96 [RBI] one year, and he passed that tonight in July,” Boone said. “And he gets walked and pitched around all the time, too. So it’s amazing. I mean, what he’s doing in this hitting climate is just — and then you add what he and Juan [Soto] are doing together. I hope everyone’s enjoying it.”
With 39 dingers in 108 team games, Judge is slightly behind his historic 2022 pace. That year, he hit 43 longballs over the same span before finishing with 62 homers, an American League record.
Chisholm didn’t get to witness that home run chase up close, but he’s been amazed by what he’s seen from Judge so far in their brief time as teammates.
“Oh my god! That’s so sick!” Chisholm said of Judge’s stats. “This is crazy to see up front, man. Like seeing him do what he do and the way he goes about it and the way he works is sick, man. It’s my first time really seeing a player work like him.”
Not one, but TWO homers on the night for The Captain 🫡
🎥 @SportsonPrime pic.twitter.com/96fxvLzXVs
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) July 30, 2024
Chisholm and Judge were not the only Yankees to homer in the game, asBen Rice slugged his own bases-empty blast in the second. The Yankees then found other ways to inflict damage on Wheeler, as Soto and Austin Wells drove in two runs apiece in the fifth. Soto did so by ripping a double, while Wells ran out the first triple of his career after taking Wheeler to the wall in right-center field.
All in all, the righty allowed seven earned runs and seven hits over five innings after entering the game with a 2.55 ERA.
Anthony Volpe added a two-run jack of his own in the eighth before Soto sent another run home with a double.
With 14 runs on Monday, the Yankees have now scored 40 times in their last four games. They’re also on a three-game winning streak after playing some abysmal baseball prior to that.
“We got a long way to go,” Boone said. “We’re working to get complete and better. It’s definitely nice to see, especially with what we’ve gone through. But we gotta keep it going and keep the vibes going. But there’s no question you [got] a glimpse of what we can be.”
While the offense bombarded the Phillies, Luis Gil held his own against a formidable lineup. He totaled 5.1 innings, five hits, three earned runs, three walks, eight strikeouts and 92 pitches while using his new slider more than his fastball again.
Two of those runs came from Brandon Marsh, who clubbed a second-deck homer in the fourth before knocking an RBI single in the sixth. The latter ended Gil’s night.
“The slider was really good early with the fastball, and then I actually thought the changeup became a factor and was better for him later in the outing,” Boone said. “He pitched outstanding; better than his line.”
The righty also allowed a run in the third when a wide Kyle Schwarber slide into second led to an off-balance throw from Gleyber Torres. Torres later committed his 14th error of the season, which came a day after he made headlines for not sounding too psyched about experimenting at third base.
Coincidentally, Gil’s spring training performance against the Phillies on March 11 catapulted him into the Yankees’ rotation after Gerrit Cole came down with a case of elbow inflammation. Gil struck out eight and permitted one hit over 3.2 scoreless innings that day.
He’s since posted a 3.20 ERA over 21 starts in his first season back from Tommy John surgery.
Because of his recent injury history and unprecedented innings count (112.2), there’s been a lot of talk over whether Gil will stay in the rotation all year. While things can change, Boone expressed confidence that Gil will remain a starter the rest of the way.
Boone shared that sentiment on Sunday after Gil popped into his office in Boston.
“He feels like he’s prepared and trained for the long haul of the season,” Boone said, summarizing their conversation. “So I’m excited where he’s still at physically, but always something we’re paying attention to.”
Added Gil on Monday: “I don’t want to give out details of a private conversation with him, but one thing that I can tell you is that I just told him that I feel ready for a long season. For a full, complete season.”
The Phillies scored another run on a wild Michael Tonkin pitch in the seventh, but the blemish hardly mattered.
After another successful night on offense, the Yankees will try to stay hot at the plate against Aaron Nola on Tuesday. Gerrit Cole will start for the Yankees. He’s looking to rebound from a poor start against another National League East team, the Mets, on July 24.
Tuesday also brings the 6 p.m. trade deadline. The Yankees are already benefiting from Chisholm’s acquisition, but they could still use pitching help and perhaps another bat.
“The other teams are making moves,” Judge said, “so hopefully we’re still making moves too.”
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