Judge knocks DiMaggio from Mount Rushmore of Yankee sluggers
They are known as the Bronx Bombers. Prodigious power is in their DNA. As such, the New York Yankees’ Mount Rushmore of home run hitters is one of the most sacred and sequestered clubs in professional sports.
People have been able to recite the four members of that echelon – Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle – rote, verbatim, for decades. It is baseball’s Pledge of Allegiance – everyone knows it, even if some greet it with an eye roll.
For 65 years, indeed, that Mount Rushmore of Yankee sluggers has remained unchanged. Ever since 28 September 1960, in fact, when Mantle passed Yogi Berra for fourth place in pinstriped homers, nobody has penetrated the quintessential quartet.
Until now.
Until another homegrown Yankee luminary.
Until Aaron James Judge.
With a colossal 468-foot blast high over everything at Fenway Park, beyond the giant left field wall and onto Lansdowne Street, the incumbent Yankee captain moved past DiMaggio on Friday night with the 362nd bomb of his career, three days after passing Berra on the same list. (1) (2)
“It’s special,” Judge said in the clubhouse following a 4-1 Yankee win over Boston. “But just like all those guys in front of me and on those lists, they weren’t playing for records. They were playing to win. So, I’m just trying to follow in their footsteps. I’m here to win. I’m trying to help put this team in the best possible position every single night.” (1)
To some, that was Judge addressing the elephant in the room: the resounding lack of a World Series ring, which saddles his psyche and looms as a ubiquitous caveat to what is otherwise one of the greatest careers in baseball history. Still, usurping Joltin’ Joe in Yankee homers represents the next step in Judge’s quest for Pinstriped Pantheon status at the very least, and we should savour his continued ascension.
Last September, I defined said Pantheon as encompassing Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle and Jeter. Back then, I put Judge in my all-time Top 10 Yankees, somewhere among Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, Mariano Rivera and Alex Rodriguez. Another phenomenal season has moved him into my Top 8, while the elusive World Series ring would probably put Judge sixth or seventh in my rankings. Multiple championships would put him in the Pantheon.
In terms of raw power, only Ruth (659 Yankee homers), Mantle (536) and Gehrig (493) compare. Judge currently ranks third all-time in Yankee slugging percentage, while his 176 wRC+ is second only to the Babe. And averaging over 50 homers per year since 2022, the 33-year-old Judge has a genuine shot at 500 lifetime jacks – a plateau breached only twice in pinstriped history.
Overall, then, with a ring or two, Judge probably has the potential to pass Jeter in Pantheon greatness. Realistically, however, he may struggle to surpass the four cornerstone scions – home runs aside. They are transcendent gods of the game, after all, and their peers can be counted on a couple of hands.
Nevertheless, rearranging the Yankees’ slugging Mount Rushmore is a remarkable achievement in its own right. A monumental achievement, indeed, and one that should be celebrated. Passing Berra and DiMaggio in any Yankee category is special, let alone the most sacrosanct category of all.
DiMaggio is my ultimate hero, as loyal readers know. There was more to Joe’s genius than statistics, and the Yankee Clipper lost three prime-age seasons due to military service. Further, DiMaggio was not necessarily a home run hitter. But it remains truly incredible to watch, in real time, a contemporary star like Judge pass a mythic figure like DiMaggio in a cherished area like homers. I’m filled with wonder, and the gravity of such a feat is palpable.
Above all else, I’m once again thankful to inhabit Judge’s epoch and to witness his rewriting of history. Number 99 was humbled last October, with that infamous World Series faux pas, and a recent flexor strain reiterated his mortality. He continues to plough on, though, a juggernaut wading through the record books. We must savour his continued excellence, as I’m always quick to say, because we may never see his like, nor his rare accomplishments, ever again.
Sources
1. Hoch, Bryan. MLB.com. [Online] September 13, 2025. https://www.mlb.com/news/aaron-judge-passes-joe-dimaggio-on-yankees-homer-list.
2. ESPN. [Online] September 10, 2025. https://www.espn.co.uk/mlb/story/_/id/46210768/judge-hits-359th-homer-passes-berra-yankees-all-list.