Yankees’ Aaron Judge takes BP before series at Dodger Stadium
Yankees’ Aaron Judge takes BP before series at Dodger Stadium on May 30, 2025, the start of a three-game set against the defending world champion Dodgers.
LOS ANGELES – Friday night’s Yankees-Dodgers World Series rematch began with something of a home run contest between the game’s most celebrated sluggers and reigning league MVPs.
After the Yankees’ Aaron Judge blasted a solo homer to center field in the visitor’s first inning at Dodger Stadium, Shohei Ohtani followed suit leading off the home half.
Leading off the Dodgers’ sixth inning, Ohtani homered again off lefty Max Fried, this one a towering shot that sailed a few feet beyond Judge’s leap at the right field wall.
That extended Ohtani’s MLB lead to 22 home runs. Fried had given up just one homer in his last seven starts entering Friday night.
Eventually, the Dodgers completely climbed back from a four-run deficit and captured an 8-5 win, handing Fried his first loss of the year.
Ohtani’s homer cut the Yankees’ lead to 5-3, after the Yanks had played a little Home Run Derby as Austin Wells slashed a solo homer and Trent Grisham launched a two-run shot in the second inning.
Leading off the third, Paul Goldschmidt drove an opposite-field homer to right, with all the damage coming against Dodgers’ right-hander Tony Gonsolin.
Ohtani slugged Friday’s first delivery from Fried over the center field wall, his sixth leadoff homer this season.
Entering the game with a sparkling 1.29 ERA, the lefty Fried hadn’t yielded a homer in his three previous starts. The last player to go deep against Fried was San Diego’s Jackson Merrill, who homered at Yankee Stadium on May 7.
Judge’s 19th homer of the year came off 1-1 fastball, tying the Yankees captain with Seattle’s Cal Raleigh and Philadelphia’s Kyle Schwarber for second among MLB hitters.
In the Dodger third, with none on base and one out, Judge left his feet to make a diving catch in right-center field, robbing Teoscar Hernandez of extra bases.