SPENCER JONES DOES NOT NEED TO BECOME AARON JUDGE, BUT HE COULD NOT ASK FOR A BETTER TEACHER

NEW YORK — The comparisons were inevitable before Spencer Jones ever played a Major League game.

Six feet seven inches. Yankees outfielder. Extraordinary raw power.

Sound familiar?

When New York officially promoted Jones in May, even MLB described the long imagined possibility of an outfield featuring two towering 6 foot 7 sluggers, Aaron Judge and Jones.

But physical resemblance is the least interesting part of their relationship now.

Jones is discovering what Judge looks like from inside the clubhouse.

On September 10, the Yankees published an interview in which Jones discussed being mentored by Judge and the support the veteran has provided during his rookie season. Jones has spent years watching Judge from a distance. Now the lessons are arriving directly.

That matters because Jones has experienced almost every emotion a rookie can encounter.

He received his first promotion in May after Jasson Domínguez suffered a shoulder injury. He returned to the minors after 10 games, then received another opportunity when Judge suffered a stress fracture in his right first rib.

His second opportunity began dramatically.

In his first game back, Jones went 3 for 3 against Boston and recorded his first Major League extra base hit.

Four games later, he produced the kind of swing that explains why scouts have dreamed about his ceiling.

Jones launched his first Major League home run 443 feet at 112.2 mph in Cleveland. Jazz Chisholm Jr. joked afterward that he initially thought Judge had hit it.

Those moments create excitement.

Judge’s mentorship can help Jones handle everything between them.

That is where the comparison should become less about dimensions and more about development.

Jones entered September 10 batting .245 with nine home runs, 31 RBIs, nine stolen bases and a .772 OPS across 204 at bats.

Those numbers are encouraging for a rookie.

They are not Aaron Judge numbers.

They do not need to be.

Jones still has obvious areas requiring refinement. Strikeouts have followed him throughout his development. Major League pitchers will continue testing whether he can adjust when they attack his swing with sequencing and location rather than simply challenging his power.

The most valuable lesson Judge can provide is not how to hit a baseball 450 feet.

Jones already possesses extraordinary power.

The harder lesson is how to survive everything surrounding that power.

How does a young hitter respond after pitchers expose a weakness?

How does he prepare when every opponent has video and data on him?

How does he separate a bad week from a bad season?

How does he handle expectations in New York?

Judge understands those questions better than almost anyone.

He also understands what it means to be an enormous Yankees prospect whose strikeouts once created questions about whether his power would translate consistently.

Jones now gets access to that experience without having to imitate the player providing it.

The timing could hardly be better.

Judge returned September 8 after missing 100 days with his rib injury. New York gradually reintroduced him into the lineup as the Yankees continued pursuing Tampa Bay in the American League East.

Jones, meanwhile, is becoming increasingly relevant to those postseason plans.

He produced a go ahead RBI single in the 10th inning against San Diego on September 4 before the Padres eventually won in the bottom half.

Then came another encouraging sign Thursday.

Jones collected three hits in New York’s 10–3 victory over Colorado, matching a career high as the Yankees completed a sweep and continued applying pressure in the division race.

This is where mentorship becomes tangible.

September is no longer developmental baseball.

Every plate appearance carries consequences.

Jones is learning how to handle them while standing alongside a captain who has spent years carrying the expectations of Yankee Stadium.

There is no guarantee Jones becomes a star.

There should also be no rush to determine his ceiling after a few hundred Major League at bats.

But the Yankees can appreciate what they have.

One enormous right handed superstar has returned.

One enormous left handed rookie is still learning.

The temptation will always be to connect them.

The smarter approach is simpler.

Let Judge be Judge.

Let Jones learn.

And perhaps years from now, the most important thing Judge gave him will not have been a swing tip at all.

It will have been a blueprint for becoming a major leaguer in New York.