WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) — Aaron Judge was treated like a rock star by hundreds of Little League players. They went crazy for the New York Yankees slugger from the moment he stepped off the plane until his final at-bat. They held out balls for autographs, begged for selfies and even asked him about the size of his muscles.
“They make me feel like the Beatles out there,” Judge said.
Judge even wore a Little League cap at his press conference and was proud of the deal he had negotiated with some kids to get the cap and collectible pins as Yankees loot.
He would have given a little more for a win.
Parker Meadows set off fireworks with a 10th-inning single that brought hundreds of Little Leaguers to their feet and scored on a headfirst slide by Zach McKinstry to give the Detroit Tigers a 3-2 victory over the Yankees in the Major League Baseball Little League Classic on Sunday night.
The Little Leaguers, where Judge was the biggest attraction – he finished the game 1 for 4 – had to wait until the ninth inning for the real excitement to begin.
“Some memories I’ll never forget,” Judge said. “I just wish the game had gone a little differently.”
Detroit rookie Jace Jung tied the game at 1-1 when he hit an RBI single with two outs against Clay Holmes in the ninth inning. That scored Colt Keith, who hit a double against the All-Star closer to spark a comeback that gave Holmes his 10th blown save of the season.
With a single in the 10th inning, DJ LeMahieu scored the automatic runner to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead, but McKinstry singled to score the automatic runner for Detroit, making it 2-2.
McKinstry stole second base and sprinted into left field against Mark Leiter Jr. (3-5) after Meadows’ base hit, while Yankees talent Jasson Domínguez hesitated for a moment before throwing the ball too late to the base.
Beau Brieske (2-3) fought for the win in one inning.
Gleyber Torres scored in the sixth inning on a wild pitch from Tigers ace Tarik Skubal to give New York a 1-0 lead.
The crowd, made up mostly of Little League players and their coaches and families — oh, and injured Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. — was among the 2,532 fans at historic Bowman Field who had come to watch Judge hit the home run. Or maybe Juan Soto.
What they got was a game that resembled many Little League games around the world that take place every year. A run was scored on a wild pitch. A batter who was out reached first base on another wild pitch. A runner was miles away from the plate trying to make a difference.
The big league players should make an impression on the kids who play in the Little League World Series.
It turned out that the Tigers and Yankees had made some stupid mistakes themselves.
For most of the kids cheering in their Little League uniforms from the front rows of the stadium, which opened in 1926, the final score didn’t seem to matter much.
Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole walked into the ESPN announcer’s booth — or, more accurately, a few stadium seats behind home plate — and chatted with a Little Leaguer. Chisholm, who captured the action with a handheld video camera, said he had become friends with a player named Russell McGee from Nevada and even followed the boy on Instagram.
“Now he’s like my little brother,” Chisholm said.
This is definitely better than catching a foul ball.
While fans were clamoring for Judge to beat his MLB record of 44 home runs, he instead threw a ball into a double play against Skubal in the sixth inning that moved Torres to third base. Instead of getting Judge out of the way, Skubal threw a wild pitch with Giancarlo Stanton at the plate that sent Torres home.
“He’s the best player in the game,” Skubal said of his win against Judge. “It’s a lot of fun and I enjoy this duel every time.”
Marcus Stroman had five strikeouts in six scoreless innings for New York.
The Classic definitely had the charm of a local Little League game. Kids sipped drinks, waited in line for hot dogs, and buckets of chips and water bottles were lined up behind each section.
Buy them some peanuts and Cracker Jack? Sure, why not, at those kiosk prices – only $3 a person for a hot dog, water and, yes, Cracker Jack – it’s certainly better than the inflated prices found at most major league stadiums.
Australian players served as stadium announcers when the Tigers got a hit in the third inning. Just about the only person—or thing?—as popular as Judge was Paws, the Tigers’ mascot. Paws had a long line inside the concourse to take selfies, a perfect time for kids to pull on his tail.
Yankees and Tigers players hung from the railing of the team bench and applauded as the 20 regional championship teams were introduced in a pregame ceremony.
Maybe there’s a reason so many players get along so well with the kids – most of them haven’t played baseball that long as youths. The Tigers, who needed the Classic to appear on ESPN’s Sunday night broadcast for the first time since 2017, had six players age 24 or younger in the starting lineup.
“We believe in these guys; we’ve believed in these guys from the beginning,” Tigers manager AJ Hinch said.
Until next year
The Seattle Mariners and New York Mets will face each other in next season’s Classic on August 17, 2025. The Mets will be making their second appearance in the Classic and will be the home team.
TRAINING ROOM
Domínguez was the 27th player selected from the minors to the Yankees’ roster for the game and batted fifth. The 21-year-old outfielder returned to the majors for the first time since undergoing Tommy John surgery on his right elbow last year. After the game, he was sent back to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Next
The Yankees have Monday off before beginning a six-game home series against the Guardians and Rockies.
The Tigers open a seven-game road trip in Chicago, starting Tuesday with the first of three games against the Cubs before playing the White Sox four times.
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