Aaron Judge hits 3 home runs in a single game — again — to lead Yankees past Diamondbacks

Aaron Judge is at it again.

Almost exactly a month after he did it the first time, the New York Yankees star rattled off three home runs Friday in his team's 7-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Judge is the first Yankees player to ever record multiple three-home-run games in a single season.

Judge got the night started in the third inning at Yankee Stadium, when he drilled a deep, three-run homer off Diamondbacks starter Brandon Pfaadt. That gave New York an early 3-0 lead.

Then, in the fifth inning, after Estevan Florial hit an RBI double to put the Yankees up 4-0, Judge hit a two-run shot. That put the Yankees up 6-0.

Two innings later, Judge completed the trifecta. He hit a solo shot to right field for his third home run of the night.

It marked Judge’s 35th home run of the season, which is tied for the third-most in the American League. He has played in just 100 games this season due to a lingering toe injury suffered in June.

By then, the Diamondbacks were well out of it. The Yankees cruised to the win, their fifth in the past eight games. The win brought them two games above .500. Arizona’s only run of the game came off a Christian Walker solo home run in the ninth inning.

Almost a month ago to the day, Judge pulled off the same feat against the Washington Nationals. He hit three home runs in a single game for the first time in his career and matched his career-high of six RBI in the outing.

While Judge’s performance is undoubtedly impressive, it’s likely not going to matter for the Yankees. They sit 17.5 games back of the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East and are a full seven games back from the final wild-card spot in the American League. With just eight games left on their schedule, the Yankees are virtually assured to miss the playoffs for the first time since 2016.