The only people more frustrated than New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge right now are TV viewers.
On Tuesday (AEDT) Judge missed another chance at hitting a record-breaking 62nd home run, leaving him just three more regular season games to surpass Roger Maris for the American League single-season record.
The problem is how ESPN, the largest sports TV network in the US, is handling his chase.
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Last week as college football fans were attempting to watch games on Saturday (US time), they were forced to watch in a split-screen whenever Judge came up for an at-bat.
This received a chorus of condemnation from fans who wanted to watch the game they had actually tuned in for.
Making matters worse ESPN opted for the audio of Judge’s at-bat over the game, and a crucial scoring play during the Clemson-Wake Forest contest could not be heard.
The network decided not to show Judge cut-ins during the Monday Night Football game between Dallas and New York, which only made things more confusing to some.
It even got to the point where NFL Redzone host Scott Hanson and one of ESPN’s own commentators Sean McDonough shared their frustration with the cut-ins on-air.
On Tuesday, Yankees pitcher Luis Severino pitched seven no-hit innings and the batters in the lineup just ahead and after Judge homered in the eighth inning to spark New York’s 3-1 victory at Texas.
Judge matched the 61-year-old mark of 61 homers set by Yankees legend Maris in 1961 with a Wednesday blast at Toronto, but hasn’t hit the record breaker in four games since.
The 30-year-old American outfielder grounded out, hit into a double play, singled and struck out against the Rangers in the first game of the season-ending series for the playoff-bound Yankees.
The Maris mark had served as the MLB record until beaten several times in the 1990s by Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire during baseball’s notorious steroid era.
Barry Bonds, implicated in the infamous BALCO drug scandal, set MLB’s single-season record of 73 homers in 2001.
Boone has said Judge’s efforts this season rank above those of Sosa, McGwire and Bonds. Judge, however, said the achievements of those National League stars deserve to be recognized as the proper records.
