 Everybody says spring training for hitters is about two weeks too long that you just wish that it would start after a month Are you itching to get ready? Get going Definitely definitely I think this whole team is you know ready to get back up to New York and get things rolling But you know those extra you know that's a couple weeks don't hurt us at all You know you can work on a couple things pictures can you know tweak a couple last-minute things And you know just get it ready for the season You know when you come off a hundred wins season and have to finish in second I'm sure you're going in realizing that every game is important right and getting off to a fast starts going to be probably key Yeah, definitely, but the big thing too is you know We've always talked about you know winning a series You know win a series well if you're playing you know three games and when you know the first two You know we you know sometimes you know a lot of teams will kind of take off that last day And you know those losses you know at the end of a series add up you know towards the end of the year So in our big goal this year is not only win every series But you know just try to dominate every series. You know, so what if we won the first two games? Let's go out there and win the third one You know let's let's make an emphasis on that to really you know So games add up at the end of the year You know those losses at the end You know anyone the first two games lose the last one that stuff adds up the end That's a that's a really great point now one series that was critical for this team was the one with the Red Sox late That you had to watch because you were injured how hard was it to watch that series versus the Red Sox Knowing how important it was and not being able to play. Oh, it was tough You know, especially just I think I don't know how many games we were back for that That four game swing right there was was huge in the standings, you know and having to sit back and you know not be able to participate And it was tough, you know, but I tried you know, whatever I could you know doing stuff on the bench They're trying to motivate guys talk to guys, you know keep things going but no It was it was a tough tough four games to watch now I did the last two games on yes with Paul O'Neill and he was marveling at the fact that somebody who was as accomplished as you Actually continues to work and how you've changed like your two-strike approach What drives you to do this stuff because if you just remain the same you can still hit 50 home runs But you've obviously worked on stuff over the one. What's that drive? Is it just something in you? You know Yeah, it's just just me working on my craft and anything I can do to help the team You know because we keep we've come up short the past two years, you know in 17, you know Coming one game away from the World Series and then in 18 Losing the DS, you know, that's that sits with you, you know You know, I thought about that a lot, you know during the off-season after that And you know just trying to think of different ways that I could try to improve You know, what can I do, you know personally to like help the team? You know, what was I lacking that I can improve on it might help the team when you know Maybe a couple more games throughout the year just something that will help, you know Put us in a better position. So I felt like working on, you know, kind of a two-strike approach It kind of simplifies things for me just to get, you know, barely baseball, you know Anything I can do just to put the ball in play if I do that, you know, there might be an error throwing there You know, maybe a couple more hits driving a couple more people Just just little things like that, you know, you can never stop working You know, it's the joy and cool thing that I saw actually, you know Coming to my first couple spring trainings and watching, you know Alex Rodriguez and Mark to share a work and how, you know, even to their last last season They were still trying to improve still trying to work on certain things. So it was Yeah, I think it's just something inside me and something I've seen from one of the great ones Totally Yankee right-fielder Aaron judge Is there any concern though Aaron that with a different two-strike approach where you don't stride as much and lift the leg as much That it might rob you of some power Yeah, that was that was part of the big concern for me But you know, then when I try to in spring training, I think five of my six home runs is in spring training We're with it. No stride and I feel like just, you know being six eight, you know, two sixty five It's you just got a touch and I think it goes especially if the winds blowing out. So, um, there wasn't wasn't any no down Power or anything like that. I think Paul O'Neill said the best he said so if he doesn't hit 450 feet I'll hit 430 it'll still go still works How about leadership everyone looks at you as you know, the next captain and next great leader of this team Have you seen your leadership in that room develop since you got called up? My biggest thing has always been, you know, just just do my job You know, I feel like this team's a well machine and if everybody is going out there doing their part You know, we're gonna we're gonna win a lot of ball games and do a lot of good things in this game You know, so for me, it's it just depends on what my role is, you know My role is to be you know a guy hitting seven eight or nine, you know Just kind of being a role player and move guys over do this and that I'll do that You know, if I got to be you know top of the lineup, you know get things going dry people in You know, I'll do that. So, you know, my role change over the years and you just got to accept it You know, there's nothing you can really do except continue to play You know your game and continue to go out there and give 110% for your teammates So, you know, just as the years have changed and my role's changed and you know, just got to embrace it or That's about it. I think it's pretty amazing I mean when you consider that you kind of got calls up in 16 and then you really hit your stride in 17 And I believe that in 19 as Don just said you're one of the leaders of the team Has it happened faster than you thought it's gonna happen? Yeah, yeah, that's that's tough. It's it's tough to say, you know, just kind of Stuff like that just kind of happens, you know, I really can't really prepare for it. Can't really, you know Just know okay next year is gonna be my year It just something kind of happens from you know Just being around the guys in the clubhouse and learning your teammates and it's just sometimes it's just a role that You know this kind of comes up and I've learned from a couple great leaders in this club also You know CC Sabati and Brett Gardner how they know how they just treat their teammates, you know, CC I remember in 2015 my first spring training, you know, I was just trying to stay out everybody's way, you know not getting away You know, I was keeping my head down, you know, and CC was gone. I was way saying, you know Hey man, what's going on? How you doing? I was a family doing he was he was talking to me like, you know We've played together for 10 years. So, you know, just seeing that from a you know Future Hall of Famer like that, you know, really showed me like hey, this is this is our leaders treat everybody The same she everybody respect and you know, that's how you get no respect from everybody And that's what you've seen from CC over the years Have you did you fill out an NCAA bracket? How are you doing and what are your thoughts on Zion? Williamson? I stopped filling out those brackets man. I thought every single time I fill it out It just some team happens some big upset and just ruins everything for me So I say myself the frustration this year, but you know, it was man Zion Williams. He's That is That's a that's a special player right there, you know, I know he gets a lot of attention But you know also the team the players like RJ Barrett, you know, Cam Reddish also, you know He's supporting cast with them. They're those are some special players, too So I'm it was exciting watching that game against UCF and It's exciting to see how they do an attorney now all of New York's got their fingers crossed that the Knicks select him You know first overall if that were to happen and he were to come to New York What advice would you have for him because it would be kind of similar right the big huge guy a lot of expectations So what advice would you have for him if he ends up being a Nick? What advice I'll just keep it simple with them, you know go out there have fun Play hard for the city, you know because the city's gonna see that and if you're playing hard given 110% They're gonna have your back, you know, we got great fans in New York and you know If you're going three's are going out there doing his job and they're gonna put on a show for everybody So just you know keep assemble before we let you go because I know you have to do some work Everybody in baseball seems young players read Bregman whatever signing contract extensions Is that something that you'd be interested in a view in the Yankee spoken about that? No, we haven't we haven't spoken about that, you know, I got I've got a job to do on the field You know so for the most part and I let my agent handle that kind of stuff So for me, I'm just gonna go out there as long as you know, I'm still in a contract doing my thing I'm just gonna go out there and keep playing so I'll let I like guys making the big bucks handle that That'll be you soon. Thank you Aaron. Awesome. Thank you guys. Good luck. That's Aaron judge