SEATTLE — Friday’s crowd of 34,073 at Safeco Field crowd got an eyewitness look at the “All Rise” phenomenon that is rookie Aaron Judge, whose three-run homer in the fifth inning nearly left the stadium.
Judge’s blast also lifted the New York Yankees to a 5-1 victory over the Seattle Mariners. The distance? Anyone’s guess. The drive didn’t register on MLB’s beloved Statcast tracker.
Too far? Too high? Too deep? Maybe all three.
Mariners officials estimated it at 440 feet. Club officials said no ball has ever left the stadium in Safeco’s 18-plus seasons.
“A bad pitch in a bad spot and a bad result,” manager Scott Servais said. “It got us behind the eight-ball there.”
Judge’s homer was his 31st of the season, which leads the majors. He recently won the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game in Miami with an impressive power display.
The ball soared over the head of left fielder Ben Gamel, who played with Judge over the previous two seasons at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
“I’ve definitely seen what he can do,” Gamel said. “He took a good swing, and he’s 6-(feet)-8 and 290 pounds. There’s a lot of force.”
Everything else Friday was a footnote.
The Yankees won for the 12th time in their last 13 games at Safeco Field. The Mariners (48-50) now trail New York by 3 1/2 games for the American League’s final wild-card spot.
New York starter CC Sabathia (9-3) lasted just five-plus innings on his 37th birthday before departing after a leadoff walk in the sixth inning.
Tommy Kahnle and David Robertson, each obtained recently from the Chicago White Sox, worked the next two innings before Dellin Betances and Adam Warren closed out the victory.
“We had a few chances and didn’t get a big hit early to get the ball rolling,” Servais said, “and their bullpen is really good.”
Mariners rookie Andrew Moore (1-2) entered the game having allowed eight homers over 24 innings in his four previous big-league starts. None of them compared to Judge’s clout.
“I pitch up in the zone,” Moore said, “and guys hit mistakes here. A lot of them have been off-speed. It’s just part of the game. You’ve got to get a new ball and go after it.”
Moore gave up five runs in six innings.
The Mariners actually opened the scoring when they nicked Sabathia for one run in the first inning on Kyle Seager’s infield single — when first baseman Chase Headley missed a late stab at the base.
But they left the bases loaded when Guillermo Heredia grounded into a force at second.
Gamel led off the second inning with a double but tried to advance to third on Jean Segura’s one-out grounder to short. Gamel was an easy out in the latest example of the Mariners’ season-long baserunning gaffes.
“I don’t break for third if I had to do it again,” he said. “That was my fault. I’ve got to be better than that. I thought it was hit a little softer than it was.”
New York took the lead by scoring twice in the third inning. They pulled even on successive doubles by Headley and Clint Frazier, who came around on two fly outs.
The Mariners left runners at second and third later in the third inning when Heredia flied out to right.
All that set up the New York fifth, when Judge teed off in the fifth inning after one-out singles by Brett Gardner and Gary Sanchez.
“If you make mistakes,” Moore said, “a lot of times they don’t come back. Especially with middle-of-the-order guys like that, the margin for error is pretty small. You’ve got to execute pitches.”
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