62: Aaron Judge, the New York Yankees, and the Pursuit of Greatness

Hoch (The Bronx Zoom), a reporter for MLB.com, provides a listless account of Aaron Judge’s historic 2022 season with the New York Yankees, during which he hit 62 home runs, setting the American League record for the most in a single season. Hoch details the circumstances of each home run and the team’s vicissitudes as it unsuccessfully pursued another World Series title. Largely glossing over Judge’s life pre-Yankees, Hoch details how the team got out to a strong start in 2022, with Judge on a hot streak that inspired speculation he could break Roger Maris’s 1961 home run record. However, the team’s prospects faded as they entered a mid-season slump and made an ill-fated trade for pitcher Frankie Montas, whose shoulder injury turned out to be more severe than the Yankees realized. Nonetheless, Judge’s streak continued, and in the penultimate game of the regular season against the Texas Rangers he hit his record-breaking 62nd home run. Hoch’s matter-of-fact storytelling and labored prose struggle to capture the excitement of the story, and sections about the hostility Maris encountered from fans who didn’t want him to surpass Babe Ruth’s record feel like filler. Dry and underwhelming, this doesn’t connect. (July)