Aaron Judge Must Use Past To Forge Future

NEW YORK—While catcher Gary Sanchez set the majors on fire with 20 home runs in 53 games and first baseman Tyler Austin recorded a .994 OPS in September, fellow rookie Aaron Judge struggled and finished the year on the disabled list with an oblique injury.

While Judge, a 24-year-old right fielder, hit just .179/.263/.345 in 27 games, minor league hitting coordinator James Rowson is confident the 6-foot-7 slugger will turn things around.

“I’ve watched him strike out—a lot—at times in the minors,” Rowson said in September. “This is one of those times. And sure, it’s a different level he’s at now, but he’s overcome this type of thing before. He’s got the talent to do it here, too.”

In his final 10 games, Judge struck out 44 percent of the time and hit one solo home run, accounting for his lone extra-base hit and RBI. At one point this season he struck out 20 times in 30 plate appearances.

Rowson is working with Judge to simplify his approach at the plate.

“It’s not about making any major overhaul,’’ Rowson said of the first-round pick out of Fresno State in 2013. “He just needs to get back to doing what got him here, and the important thing is not to panic. We know that’s not going to happen because he’s been through this before.”

If Judge needs inspiration, he can look to Austin, who struggled for weeks before catching fire in September.

Austin, a 2010 sixth-round pick who started the season at Double-A Trenton, slammed seven extra-base hits in his final 20 games after hitting one in his first 11.

Like Judge, Austin has been through his fair share of ups and downs on his way to the majors.

For example, the Yankees designated Austin for assignment on Sept. 1, 2015. He passed through waivers and remained with the organization before his breakout 2016 season resulted in a callup from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Aug. 13.

YANKEE DOODLES

• The Yankees added to their minor league depth by trading outfielder Ben Gamel, the MVP of the International League this season, to the Mariners for a pair of young righthanders. Jio Orozco and Juan De Paula ranked first and third, respectively, in strikeouts in the Rookie-level Arizona League.

• The Yankees completed the Ivan Nova trade with the Pirates, acquiring Tito Polo, a 5-foot-9 outfielder with some power and speed, and lefthander Stephen Tarpley, who throws a plus fastball.