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USA Today via Reuters

USA Today via Reuters

It’s a tale as old as time: Spring Training rolling around, the sun shining brightly on those Florida diamonds, and Yankee fans holding their breath. Will this be the year a World Series ring returns to the Bronx? Or will familiar anxieties resurface? Right now, all eyes are on captain Aaron Judge.

The slugger is famous for his Herculean swings. But something’s a little… off this season. The Yankees’ star’s Spring Training statistics paint a worrisome picture. Where are those legendary home runs? Could this be an omen of a season gone wrong?

Aaron Judge’s stats don’t lie (but they might be stretching the truth)

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Judge’s MLB.Com stats right now are less than stellar: six at-bats, three runs scored, two hits, and zero home runs. Zero. Zilch. Not a single ball has sailed over the outfield fence. Naturally, this has sent New York Yankees’ Twitter into a predictable meltdown. After all, the team did just acquire another superstar hitter in Juan Soto, and the potential Judge-Soto power duo is the stuff of legend.

The numbers don’t lie, but you might want to take a deep breath. Spring Training is notoriously unreliable as an indicator of regular-season performance. Besides, is anyone really surprised that a player of Aaron Judge’s caliber is facing some early-season adjustments?

Adding fuel to the fire, Judge himself admitted last season that the Yankees lacked a sense of urgency, particularly in comparison to division rivals like the Tampa Bay Rays, according to Pinstripe Alley. This apparent complacency, as Judge vowed, “definitely won’t happen next season.” Yet, the lack of Spring Training fireworks has some worried that not enough has changed.

Aaron Judge’s comments last year, coupled with his current slump, have ignited a fiery debate: Are the Bombers doomed to repeat their 2023 disappointment? Will another season come and go without a World Series ring? Fans have certainly started reacting.

Read More: In Pics: When Not Hitting Home Runs, Aaron Judge Takes Impressive Photos

Panic Mode Activated: Top 5 conspiracy theories about Judge’s missing homers

The doomsayers are already predicting disaster, while the optimists are clinging to the hope that it’s far too early to panic. Some are even finding dark humor in the situation, joking that the All-Rise is clearly saving all his dingers for the games that actually count. Whatever the prevailing sentiment, one thing’s for sure: Yankees Twitter is going to be a wild ride this spring. And here’s a little glimpse of it:

This fan’s in full-on meltdown mode over a season that hasn’t even begun. “Judge to the moon. The season is over!!”

“Arson would have been better,” believes one who would rather set the world ablaze than watch a homer-less Judge.

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An enthusiastic one sees a silver lining: “Unreal… really? It’s spring training. SPRING TRAINING!!! Ugh. By the way how many early dingers did he hit when he set the AL record? You guessed it, not many. That year he also had a very slow start.”

Another believes he is “Saving the home runs for the real games (not playoffs though)”.

“Look at the batting avg and OPS…he’s fine sir,” says one, while shrugging off the absence of home runs by pointing at his glaring batting average.

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The sky might be falling on Yankees fans right now, but let’s be real—it’s the drama we crave. Most of this panic is tongue-in-cheek, and Judgey will likely find his groove soon enough. After all, it’s just Spring Training… Where else can fans unleash their wildest theories and most over-the-top despair, if not on Twitter?

Read More: Aaron Judge Back to 2022 Ways? Latest Projections Place Yankees’ Captain Atop MLB’s Sluggers