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Yankees welcome back baseball with pair of monster homers

Baseball returned to our lives in a big way on Friday. The spring training schedule opened with a handful of games across the Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues, and we were even treated to our first television broadcast as the YES Network covered the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees game from Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla.

We’re thankful they did. Not just because we got to witness some live game action. But mainly because we didn’t have to miss a pair of absolutely monstrous home runs from New York’s Didi Gregorius and Aaron Judge.

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As you can see in the video above, both home runs were absolutely destroyed.

Gregorius’ first-inning solo blast against Alec Asher went down as the first official home run of spring training, and we’re not entirely sure its landed yet. The homer appeared to clear the bullpen and the stands, making it one impressive poke.

Heck, even coach Alex Rodriguez was impressed.

The Yankees will hope that’s the sign of continued development for Gregorius, who mashed a career-high 20 homers last season.

As for Judge, he unloaded against Phillies prospect Elniery Garcia, and it’s possible the reason his ball landed was because of the gigantic scoreboard that stood in its path. A more impressive home run you won’t see at any point during the season, but especially so in February, when players are still trying to find their groove.

Perhaps we shouldn’t be too surprised though. After all, Judge made history with Tyler Austin last August as they became the first teammates in MLB history to hit back-to-back homers in each of their first career plate appearances.

Judge figures to have the inside track to play right field for New York this season. Swings like Friday’s won’t hurt, but the team also hopes he’ll cut down on his strikeouts after whiffing 42 times in 95 at-bats last season.

Baseball is back and so are the Bronx Bombers. (AP)
Baseball is back and so are the Bronx Bombers. (AP)

The Yankees also got a home run from catcher Kyle Higashioka in their 9-4 win against the Phillies.

Of course, we all know the win and the stats within will disappear once April 2 arrives. For now though, allow us to revel in the sights and sounds of actual baseball. We couldn’t be happier to have our beloved game back.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!