Aaron Judge was a first-round draft pick, so no one was surprised when he rose quickly through the minor leagues. Last season's trade deadline deals paved the way for Judge's debut on August 13th. His mammoth home run to dead-center field in his first major league at-bat began his meteoric rise to fame.
Enthusiasm for Judge was somewhat tempered with his high strikeout rate last season, but he won a spring training competition with Aaron Hicks to earn the starting job in right field. Since then, he has mounted a rookie campaign that ranks among the best in baseball history.