It wasn't a conscious decision made by the best hitter on the planet to swing early and often. You can't argue with the results, though.

You wouldn’t have known it from the way Aaron Judge swung the bat on Sunday, but his back bothered him prior to the Yankees’ 12-5, rubber match win over the Athletics. “I was just a little banged up pregame,” Judge said, downplaying the ache after Aaron Boone briefly mentioned it in his postgame press conference.

New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge homered twice on Sunday in a blowout victory against the Athletics (box score), giving him 30 home runs on the season and even greater historic standing. Judge, who has now homered 30-plus times before the All-Star Game on four occasions,