Aaron Judge sets career high with 53rd homer, inches closer to Yankees record

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Yankees slugger Aaron Judge has done it again, homering in back-to-back games to get a new career high for himself in that category as he chases history.

Judge mashed his 53rd homer of the season on his first at-bat against the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday afternoon after tying his career high in the ninth inning in Saturday's 2-1 loss. The ball went an estimated 450 feet down the left field line.

Not only did Judge give himself a new career high, but more importantly for the Yankees' record books, he's another home run closer to the single-season record set by Roger Maris back in 1961.

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Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees rounds the bases after his home run against the Tampa Bay Rays during the ninth inning at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, on Sept. 3, 2022. (Mike Carlson/Getty Images)

It's the famous 61 homers in '61 that Judge is trying to hunt down in this final month of the regular season. He now needs just eight homers to tie and nine to set the record solely with his name next to it.

Chasing Maris has been a large topic of conversation, especially as the regular season enters the home stretch. However, Judge has been focused on winning games, something the Yankees have struggled to do in the second half of the season.

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Frankly, it's been only Judge pulling his weight at the plate. Players like DJ LeMahieu, Gleyber Torres, Josh Donaldson and more have struggled mightily since the All-Star break, and the record reflects that.

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge celebrates after hitting a home run during the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays in St. Petersburg, Florida, on Sept. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Scott Audette)

The Yankees finished 10-18 in August, the most losses they've totaled in a single month since September 1991 when they went 9-19.

When Judge hit his 50th homer against the Los Angeles Angels, a game in which the Yankees lost, 3-2, the MVP candidate didn't care much for joining elite company with Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle as the only Yankees with multiple 50-home run seasons.

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"It’s just another number," Judge said via ESPN. "It’s great, but I’m kind of upset we lost. It’s a close game we could’ve won."

That's been the sentiment each time Judge has went yard but the Yankees end up losing.

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge circles the bases after hitting a home run against the Tampa Bay Rays during the first inning in St. Petersburg, Florida, on Sept. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Scott Audette)

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In Saturday night's loss, the Tampa Bay Rays inched closer in the record that actually matters, the AL East division lead. The Yankees, who once held a 15.5-game lead on Tampa Bay, saw it to diminish to four games.