There are plenty of precedents for World Series woes, but it's no fun watching Aaron Judge struggle

When Aaron Judge reaches into the batter's box, he brings with him a portrait of greatness. The navy portion of his Statue of Liberty batting gloves features the outline of Michael Jordan in flight and the famous Jumpman logo. Many people wear it, both in and out of sports. Few can claim to be like Mike.

Judge can. He is the captain of the New York Yankees and the most productive hitter of his era. Even if you want him to lose, you hope he captivates you in the process. The crowds weren't always thrilled with Jordan, but no one paid for him slipping on the way into the air.

That's why it's painful to watch Judge struggle in the World Series. He is 1 for 9 with six strikeouts, and although it's only two games, another loss by the Yankees in Game 3 on Monday would all but secure the title for the Los Angeles Dodgers. No team has ever recovered from a three-game deficit to win the World Series.

“Because of his size and his track record, you think he's different from everyone else, and he is, because he's so gifted in all facets of the game – but he's also human,” Hall of Famer Jim Palmer said , who has appeared in six World Series and another four for ABC.

“It's not karma, it's not that he's an arrogant guy and points at others. Some guys deserve to have a losing streak, but Aaron Judge isn't in that group because he's too classy a guy. He's respectful, all that stuff. But I always say to Suzyn Waldman: What does John Sterling say? ‘This is baseball, Suzyn?’ And that’s exactly what happens.”

Baseball has always been like this. Ty Cobb hit .200 in his first World Series. Honus Wagner hit .222. Walter Johnson and Christy Mathewson have lost as many times as they have won in the World Series, and both have lost a winner-take-all game. This quartet with Babe Ruth formed the first-ever Hall of Fame class.

There's more. Willie Mays never hit a home run in the World Series. Jackie Robinson hit .182 in 1955 and was benched for Game 7 at Yankee Stadium when Brooklyn won its only championship. Ted Williams, bothered by an elbow injury, hit five singles in 25 at-bats in his only World Series. Mike Schmidt was an MVP in his first World Series, but went 1-for-20 in his next.

“You do your best to make swing changes—thought changes—as you go, and if you don't, the environment is so electric that sometimes you give in to the environment,” Schmidt told me a few years ago for The Grandest Stage,” my book about the history of the World Series.

“You're overanxious, you read headlines, you're 0 for 15, whatever it was. You start thinking, 'This is bad, the whole world knows how bad I feel!' As opposed to, 'Who cares?'”

It's hard to play it easy when there's so much at stake. Judge spoke late Saturday night about “expanding the zone” and “trying to make something happen,” which is what hitters say when they're not striking out. It's an unfamiliar feeling for Judge, whose discipline is helping him become elite.

According to Statcast data from Fangraphs, Judge had the lowest chase rate in the American League during the regular season, hitting just 17.7 percent of throws outside the zone. This postseason, however, Judge's rate has increased to 29.7 percent. In 11 games this month, Judge is 6 for 40 (.150) with two home runs and 19 strikeouts.

The Dodgers kept Judge off balance. He saw 43 pitches in the first two games and only got two fastballs in a row once, picking the second one for his only hit, against Brusdar Graterol in Game 1.

Three strikeouts from starter Jack Flaherty followed, all with momentum, all on a different pitch: a slider in the zone in the first inning, a curveball in the dirt in the third, a fastball on the outside corner in the sixth.

In his final at-bat of Game 1, against closer Blake Treinen, Judge took two sweeps for strikes, then deflected a third that was well off the plate for ball 1. He fouled off another sweeper before popping up on a fastball. Aaron Boone, the Yankees' manager, was encouraged by this attack.

“I thought he had really good shots, I thought he got the swing right, I thought he was in the zone on the court for a long time that he could hit, and he ends up getting under it and letting it bounce up , which could have just as easily happened.” “I was sitting in the seats,” Boone told Tom Verducci on Fox's pregame show before Game 2. “I thought it was a really good shot, the right shot, and When I actually see Aaron, he looked more in line with rolling.”

But Game 2 again brought three strikeouts and a harmless popout, this time without a single mixed-in. Judge swung and missed five different throws: Yoshinobu Yamamoto's slider, curveball, fastball and splitter, and Treinen's sweeper. Boone hinted that a mechanical issue could potentially affect Judge's swing decisions, but he's also simply missing the throws he normally makes.

When considering the match, the natural comparison is Dave Winfield, who went 1-for-22 in his first World Series against the Dodgers in 1981 and spoke to Judge on the field before Game 2.

Dave Winfield chats with Aaron Judge before Game 2 of the 2024 World Series. (Michael Owens / MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Palmer called it the World Series — when he was still an active player — and said his thoughts were also with Winfield. He also noted that Winfield ended up in Cooperstown, where his plaque notes that he doubled in the 1992 World Series victory for Toronto.

“So that defines you right now, but does it apply to the rest of your career?” Palmer said. “Of course not.”

The judge still has time. In recent years, we've seen standouts like David Wright of the New York Mets (2015) and Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies (2022) reach deep into Game 3 in front of their home crowd in their first career World Series. No one would be surprised if Judge did the same.

But no matter how it all plays out, the anxieties of this postseason should make Judge better in the long run. Palmer, who now calls plays for the Baltimore Orioles, said Judge showed long ago that he could learn from disappointments.

“Will he be able to change it, I don’t know, but if he doesn’t — or even if he does — it makes you more thoughtful,” Palmer said. “He is the king of adjustments; In his rookie year he struck out 84 runs with 42 strikeouts and the following year he hit 52 home runs. So you know he's going to try to get better.

“But that’s hard to do in a short series.”

(Top photo of Aaron Judge in Game 1 of the World Series: Maddie Meyer / Getty Images)