He does it all! Judge's impressive HR heist leaves teammates amazed.

 WASHINGTON – Aaron Judge's ability to hit home runs with unmatched ease is impressive enough, but when he starts robbing them, it becomes almost unfair.

Although Judge remained at 51 home runs during Monday’s series opener against the Nationals, he made a significant impact at the center-field wall. In the fourth inning of New York’s 5-2 victory, Judge leaped to snatch what would have been a game-tying homer from Andrés Chaparro.

“I was pretty pumped up about that one,” Judge said.

In addition to his defensive heroics, Judge recorded his 1,000th career hit. Gleyber Torres, Austin Wells, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. also homered, while Nestor Cortes delivered 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball, helping the Yankees maintain the best record in the AL and extend their lead in the East to two games over the Orioles—their largest since June 26.

Soto’s return to Nationals Park was a major topic throughout the day as it marked his first game as a Yankee in the city where he spent the early part of his career. Soto went hitless but received a warm reception from fans. Judge also drew a walk before collecting his milestone hit—a single to the opposite field in the ninth inning.

Judge became the 42nd player in Yankees history to reach 1,000 hits, the first since Brett Gardner in 2017.

“I called [the robbery] his 52nd homer of the year,” manager Aaron Boone said. “He’s really good at this stuff. On a night when he keeps the ball in the park, he takes one back. It’s just a reminder of how many other things he does well.”

Before the game, Soto shared his thoughts on Judge’s exceptional talent. “He’s 6-7,” Soto joked. “He’s a great player. Every day he comes to the field ready to work hard. His work ethic is one of the best I’ve ever seen.”

Chaparro experienced the reality of Judge’s skills firsthand when he hit a 99.4 mph fastball from Cortes, projected to travel 389 feet. “As soon as I hit it, I thought I had hit it well enough,” Chaparro said. “I was very surprised when he caught it. I thought it was going to be a home run.”

Yankees left fielder Alex Verdugo, who had an impressive play of his own earlier in the inning, was awed by Judge’s catch. “I was running with him and didn’t think there was a chance,” Verdugo remarked. “But he’s so big, and he got to the wall perfectly.”

At 6-foot-7, Judge brings a unique presence to center field. He arrived at the wall in stride, reached over to grab Chaparro’s fly ball, and made a precise throw to cutoff man Torres, initiating an inning-ending 8-4-3 double play.

After the game, Wells reflected on Judge’s incredible catch: “When he jumped and caught it, I was almost taken aback, like ‘Holy cow!’ It’s great to have a guy out there who can climb the walls and catch balls that might be going out. It’s special to watch.”