“I’m jealous of the Gold Glove” Aaron Judge looked up to Roberto Clemente
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, winner of the 2023 Roberto Clemente Award, looked up to the legend.
Judge attended the Roberto Clemente Award ceremony held ahead of Game 3 of the World Series held at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, USA on the 31st (Korean time).
At this event, he said, “3000 hits is really impressive. Batting average, home run record, but honestly, the thing I envy the most is the Gold Glove,” he said, also conveying his thoughts about Hall of Fame member Clemente, the man for whom this award is named.
Clemente recorded a batting average of 0.317, an on-base percentage of 0.359, a slugging percentage of 0.475, 240 home runs, 3,000 hits and 1,305 RBIs in 2,433 games over 18 seasons. He was selected as a National League All-Star in 1966, and went on to become a 15-time All-Star, 12-time Gold Glove winner, and 2-time World Series winner.
He was also interested in social contribution activities and lost his life in a plane accident on December 31, 1972, while on his way to Nicaragua for earthquake relief work.
In honor of him, the Major League changed the name of the award given to players who exemplified social contribution to the Roberto Clemente Award under the name of the ‘Commissioner Award’, and it continues to this day.
Judge said, “If you watch his highlight video, you can see him chasing a batted ball toward the corner of the right outfield, catching it, and then throwing it all the way to home. “I think he’s shown the standard for what it means to be an All-Star outfielder,” he said of Clemente.
He continued, “He was a person who took more pride in defense as well as offense. I talked to our team legend, Paul O’Neill, and he said he wanted to follow Clemente’s example and play right field defense like him, so he wore number 21. Clemente is the one who set the standard for the perfect player. I don’t know if I can match his Gold Glove record. But he will be in my heart,” he said, expressing his respect for the legend.
Judge is the fourth Yankees player to receive this award, following Ron Guidry (1984), Don Baylor (1985), and Derek Jeter (2009).
He established the ‘All Rise Foundation’ in 2018 and has supported the growth of youth. “If you look at CC Sabathia and Derek Jeter, they all have their own foundations. Dave Winfield also had a foundation. “And through these foundations, I was able to help young children and see them grow up to be college students, which was really special,” he said, adding that he was influenced by the activities of his seniors.
He continued, “I was thinking about what to name the foundation, and I chose ‘All Rise’ (Judge’s name also has the meaning of judge, so it became a catchphrase to describe Judge),” explaining the reason he started his own charity project. . 먹튀검증
He also shared his reaction when he first heard the news of the award. “I was working out when I got a call from the club’s public relations team,” he said, while visiting his parents’ house in California with his wife. ‘It’s a very important story,’ so I asked, ‘What is it? I thought, ‘Has it been traded?’ But he was calling to inform me of the award news. “He was at a loss for words,” he recalled of that time.