Aaron Judge traded the Bronx for Queens on his night off.
Instead of hitting home runs for the Yankees, the Yankees slugger visited the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center with his wife Samantha Bracksieck, Bombers teammate Anthony Rizzo and his wife Emily for a night out at the U.S. Open on Thursday.
The quartet were spotted sipping on the tennis tournament’s signature Honey Deuces – a Grey Goose-based drink topped with three melon balls – as Karolina Muchova beat Naomi Osaka at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
It’s become a tradition for the Yankees captain, having seen action with Bracksieck each of the last two years.
A night of rest is deserved for Judge, whose season has picked up in recent weeks.
In 24 games so far in August, he’s hitting .415/.556/.927 with 12 homers and 24 RBIs, including 24 walks — nine intentional — and six doubles, with a pair of stolen bases thrown in for good measure.
On the season, Judge entered Thursday night leading all of MLB with 51 home runs, 123 RBIs, a .467 on-base percentage, a .731 slugging percentage and a 1.198 OPS.
His .333 batting average is second only to Kansas City’s Bobby Witt (.345).
Unsurprisingly, Judge owns an MLB-best 10.1 offensive WAR and is on pace to challenge his own AL record of 62 home runs.
He appears poised to get a boost in the lineup from his good friend Rizzo, who is close to a return from a rehab assignment at Double-A Somerset, with the Yankees looming after being placed on the injured list with a forearm injury in mid-June.
The first baseman will contribute to a playoff push that should be tight in the AL East.
On Friday, they return to baseball, with the Cardinals in two games of a three-game series at Yankee Stadium.
