Aaron Judge calls Toronto Blue Jays pitcher 'class act' for returning historic home run ball
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge called one of the Toronto Blue Jays pitchers "a class act" for his instrumental role in returning Judge's historic home run ball to the Yankees on Wednesday night's game.
During the third game of a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre Wednesday, Judge tied the MLB American League (AL) record for most home runs in a single season.
Pitched to by reliever Tim Mayza, Judge hit his 61st home run of the season into the Blue Jays bullpen during the seventh inning of Wednesday’s game. With Aaron Hicks on first base, Judge hit the record-tying homer on a 3-2 count to give the Yankees a 5-3 lead.
Before falling into the bullpen, the lucrative ball grazed the glove of a Toronto Blue Jays fan sitting in the first row, a Toronto restaurateur named Frankie Lasagna.
Lasagna had brought the glove for exactly that reason – he’d hoped he’d have the chance to take home a piece of baseball history, or at least leverage it.
“I would have held on to it for as long as I could (to) negotiate,” he told the Canadian Press. “Maybe get Judge to try to come to the restaurant.”
But ultimately, Lasagna left empty-handed, as he couldn’t quite reach the ball, allowing it to fall into the Jays bullpen.
“The disbelief comes over you and just the shock and the amazement,” he said. “I was like, 'Oh my God, I almost had it.’”
From there, Blue Jays bullpen coach Matt Buschmann caught the ball after it bounced off a wall, a spokesperson for the team confirmed. He and closer Jordan Romano made sure it got back to the Yankees, they said.
“Romano was one of several people involved in our bullpen. He made sure our group hung onto it until Zack Britton of the Yankees came to get it,” the spokesperson said.
In an interview after the game, Judge called Romano a "class act" for handing the ball back to Britton.
"He's one of the best in the game. It definitely means a lot. I gotta try and find him and thank him," he added.
In a video shared to MLB.com, Judge can be seen taking photos with the historic ball alongside his mother, who watched all three games in Toronto in anticipation of the big moment. He says the ball has now been "locked up" by the Yankees equipment manager.
Overall, Judge called the moment “an incredible honour” in an interview following the game and said he felt relieved.
With files from The Canadian Press.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
There's actually no such thing as vegetables. Here's why you should eat them anyway
The rumours are true: Vegetables aren't real — that is, in botany, anyway. While the term fruit is recognized botanically as anything that contains a seed or seeds, vegetable is actually a broad umbrella term.
'It looked so legit': Ontario man pays $7,700 for luxury villa found on Booking.com, but the listing was fake
An Ontario man says he paid more than $7,700 for a luxury villa he found on a popular travel website -- but the listing was fake.
The Met Gala was in full bloom with Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, Mindy Kaling among the standout stars
The Met Gala and its fashionista A-listers on Monday included Jennifer Lopez, Zendaya and a parade of others in a swirl of flora and fauna looks on a green-tinged carpet lined by live foliage.
Israeli forces seize Rafah border crossing in Gaza, putting ceasefire talks on knife's edge
Israeli tanks seized control of Gaza's vital Rafah border crossing on Tuesday as Israel brushed off urgent warnings from close allies and moved into the southern city even as cease-fire negotiations with Hamas remained on a knife's edge.
Canadian cadets rock mullets and place second at U.S. military competition
Sporting mullets, Canadian Armed Forces officer cadets placed second in an annual military skills competition in the U.S.
Highlights from the 2024 Met Gala exhibit: Sleeping Beauty would wake up for these gowns
Sure, she was a royal princess and all. But there’s no way Sleeping Beauty — either before or after her nap — ever had quite the fabulous wardrobe that’s been assembled at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Noelia Voigt resigns as Miss USA, citing her mental health
Noelia Voigt, who was crowned Miss USA in November 2023, has announced she is resigning from her role, saying the decision is in the best interest of her mental health.
Putin begins his fifth term as president, more in control of Russia than ever
Vladimir Putin began his fifth term Tuesday as Russian leader at a glittering Kremlin inauguration, setting out on another six years in office after destroying his political opponents, launching a devastating war in Ukraine and concentrating all power in his hands.
Winnipeg man admits to killing four women, argues he's not criminally responsible
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.