Judge’s solo shot to right-center field in the bottom of the sixth broke a 1-1 tie with Toronto, the swing that sparked a late rally in a 5-1 win, the Yankees’ second victory of the day. The Yankees crushed the Jays in Game 1 earlier in the afternoon, an 11-2 blowout.

After all, Soto's presence ahead of Judge in the Yankees' lineup did create more opportunities for the latter to bat with a man on base. He saw more pitches to hit accordingly, so of course he went off for a 58-homer, 144-RBI season that netted him his second American League MVP.

Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees were angry over the home run that wasn’t. Judge drove a changeup from Tampa Bay’s Eric Orze deep down the left-field line, high above the foul pole at Steinbrenner Field.