Yankees Aaron Judge explains why the offense has hit a skid

Yankees Aaron Judge explains why the offense has hit a skid originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The New York Yankees have not been on their game as of late, losing their fifth straight game to the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday, 5-4. The offense has been the main focus of the Yankees' struggles, contributing to this poor stretch.

Yankees All-Star outfielder Aaron Judge has not been his MVP-like self to start the season, hitting .218 with a .783 OPS and four home runs in 15 games. Given his struggles and being a leader in the Yankees clubhouse, Judge does not think he and his teammates are “pressing at the plate,” but because they're “getting into bad counts.”

Aaron Judge doesn't believe the New York Yankees struggles are due to them “getting into bad counts” at the plate

“You know, we've got to try and draw some tough at-bats. But we need to simplify some things at the plate. We’re trying to hit every single pitch we see up there, and we're getting ourselves in some bad counts and bad situations,” Judge said to YES Networks' Meredith Marakovits. “So I think as a group, we need to simplify some things, simplify our approach a little, hunt the pitch we're looking for, and pass the baton; I think we'll get a better spot.”

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The Yankees have been unable to score more than four runs in a game during this losing streak and have gone 25-165 (.151 batting average) at the plate. Judge himself is hitting .208 with a .720 OPS, with a home run and seven strikeouts in his last seven games.

As the seven-time All-Star goes, the Yankees go. Judge looked better in the Yankees' loss to the Rays, hitting a home run and drawing a walk in three at-bats. But if the Yankees' offense is to get itself back on track, Judge’s bat will need to catch fire.

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