New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge stands as one of the most feared hitters in baseball history, but his path to greatness almost took a completely different route on the mound. A retrospective look at his early collegiate career highlights how close the superstar came to choosing pitching over hitting. When he first arrived at Fresno State University, team coaches faced a major choice regarding how to deploy his unique physical talents.
Before making his mark in college, Judge was a dominant two-way force at Linden High School in California. He captured a league Triple Crown with a blistering .500 batting average, while simultaneously flashing elite potential as an ace pitcher. On the mound, he posted an immaculate 6-0 record alongside a 0.88 ERA and 65 strikeouts, leaving scouts wondering where his true future lay.
The final trajectory of his career took shape during his freshman season in college. According to details regarding the debate over being a pitcher versus a hitter, Fresno State staff ultimately decided to pull him off the mound entirely to unlock his raw power at the plate. The decision paid immediate dividends as Judge focused all his energy on his swing.
He responded by putting together an exceptional 2011 campaign, finishing his freshman year with a .358 batting average. That performance earned him the WAC Freshman of the Year honors and a selection as a Freshman All-American. He sustained that elite production throughout his entire three-year tenure at Fresno State, tracking a career .345 collegiate average.
The New York Yankees selected him in the first round of the 2013 MLB Draft, setting off his professional run. Judge went on to capture three American League MVP awards and shattered the AL single-season home run record by blasting 62 home runs in 2022. He followed that by becoming the fastest player in Major League Baseball history to hit 300 career home runs, reaching the milestone in 2024. Fresno State formally honored his university contributions by permanently retiring his number 29 jersey in November 2023.