NEW YORK – For the first time in his professional career, Aaron Judge wore a baseball hat that the subject of Oher then represented the New York Yankees.
“Got the right size,” Judge said, smiling and placed on his head on his head on his head.
Of course it was the right size, dreamed of Guardo who represented the United States from the moment I added the Team USA manager to the stock exchange in the World Baseball Classic 2026.
He doesn’t have to dream anymore. Judge and Derosa formally announced on Monday afternoon at the Yankee Stadium that he will serve as a captain for Team USA in the long -awaited worldwide tournament of next year. It will be Judge’s first time to participate in the WBC, and he is the first player mentioned in the Team USA selection for 2026.
“Getting the chance to represent the country, just think about the brave men and women who have anger for this country and have downloaded their lives for us to get the chance to go outside and play a game, it’s a pretty modest experience,” Judge said. “Happy to represent the US and I’m glad I’m your captain.”
For Derosa it intended to lead the judge the team on the field while holding the American flag too logical. But first I had to delete the man who was wearing the flag before the US Team took Japan in the WBC final of 2023. Angels Outfielder Mike Trout was the leader of Team USA in 2023, and he is happy to take on that responsibility.
“I went back to trout yesterday,” Derosa said. “Told him where we went. He said, “He’s the one. ‘I can no longer be fired for Aar Jugge to be the leader of Team USA.
Vs. Japan Highlights | 2023 World Baseball Classic Championship
Judge said he did not speak with the Yankees prior to his decision to play in the WBC 2026.
“I think he’s the perfect face to be the leader of Team USA,” said Yankees manager Aaron Boone. “I know it’s really enthusiastic.
This was the second time from Derosa that Judge asked to play for Team USA. The judge was recruited to participate in the American selection lined with star in the winter of 2022, but he was a bit busy navigating by his own free desk at the time. Moreover, I had just finished a grinding of a 2022 campaign; Hitting 62 home rons with the media and Franzy who was accompanied by breaking a historical record can take a toll from everyone.
When the dual MVP prize winner eventually signed for the nine-year-old deal with the Yankees and was named Captain in December of that year, his most important priority was spent time with his teamies. Judge did not feel that it was the right time to leave the spring training of the Yankees.
But Judge, who will be 33 years old on April 26, said he would always play for Team USA. Now he will follow in the footsteps of the former Yankes captain Derk Jeter, who represented Team USA in the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009.
“I got an option before I get too old and Mark doesn’t want me there anymore,” he joked.
Derosa played together as a member of Team USA in the WBC 2009. I was published in all eight games .316 and led red, white and blue with nine RBI on the way to the first semi -final of the US in the event.
“It’s different, you have the US over your chest. I can’t talk enough,” Derosa said. “The submission happens when you place the US over your chest and you walk into the clubhouse and you see all those guys. It just means a little different subject. You play for much more than yourself. You play for your great -grandfather. Grandparents, your parents, what they represent, your moral, your values, everything.
The WBC seemed to increase in popularity since the US defeated Puerto Rico to win the championship game in 2017. But there was nothing above the pandemonium that held the international event of 2023, when Derosa stabbed the most with stars in WBC history.
The 30-man from Team USA contained 21 All-Stars and four MVPs, Trut Trout, Mookie Betts, Paul Goldschmidt and Clayton Kershaw. Although they came close for two years before Shhei Ohtani and Samurai Japan stood in the way, the last and only WBC championship of Team USA was won in 2017.
Judge is hungry to arrange the title for Team USA again. Although he will leave the responsibility of the recruitment of players to his skipper, it will be interesting to see if there is a wrinkle effect around baseball now one of the greatest faces of the sport has announced that he will play. Could the rule of the National League Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes be the following? What about All-Star Shortstop Bobby Witt Jr.?
“I think this team will be on a mission,” said Judge. “Many hungry guys from the last WBC team that wants to be in it.
Derosa said that from the point of view of the position player “I could probably fill five line-ups with boys who want to do it.” But it is the pitching staff that will be harder to lock. Pitchers (and their managers) are usually worried about messing around with their disaster-ups from their dismissals out of season in case it leads to impurity. Because the WBC takes place during the spring training, it can be difficult for pitchers to agree to that competitive play -off chairman, while taking into account that it still builds up the workloads for the Major League Baseball season.
“That’s the hardest thing for these guys,” said Derosa. “They come exactly from the 10 days in spring training and they are beaten in their mouths with a play-off battle. But that is also the great thing to see the best players in our against and a kind of I Don because that makes them successful but playing as a team.”
“I feel that we are all under one flag, one nation,” said Judge. “I think that is a pretty cool game for such a small amount of time, so to get such a chance, I think boys are really being attracted to it.”
Full WBC schedules will be completed in February. Team use plays in Pool B, which will evoke Brape, Great Britain, Italy and Mexico. Pool B is planned to take place from 6-11 March in Daikin Park in Houston, the home of the Astros. The semi -final and finals are held in Miami in Landot Park, the home of the Miami Marlins, starting on March 15.
Until then, Judge is on another mission. He is aimed at returning the Yankees to the World Series and winning his first championship. Simple aough.
“I hope this year for a long, long season,” said Judge. “Very short out of season. And we will just let it roll straight into the WBC.”
Deesha Thosar is an MLB reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. They New York Daily news. Follow Twitter on @Deeshahatsar.
Aaron Judge
New York Yankees
Major League Baseball
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