NEW YORK -- It was the third inning on Wednesday, and Aaron Judge was being cheered once again as he rounded the bases in what would soon be his 38th career multi-homer performance. Standing in the dugout, Nestor Cortes heard teammate Marcus Stroman remark: ¡°Oh man, this guy¡¯s incredible.¡±

Cortes had the good fortune to be Judge¡¯s teammate two years ago, when the whole city seemed to tune in for these nightly displays of greatness. The hurler replied: ¡°I watched this in 2022, all year. It felt like every time he was up, it was either a homer or a walk. And that¡¯s exactly what¡¯s happening now.¡±

On a night when Juan Soto drove in five runs, Judge also shined brightly, belting his Major League-leading 46th and 47th home runs. The Yankees thumped the Guardians, 8-1, as the American League¡¯s MVP front-runner now sits on pace to reach 60 homers for the second time in his career.

¡°Until I take the jersey off my back, I want to try to get better every single year and do whatever I can to help the Yankees win a World Series,¡± Judge said. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m here. I try to never be satisfied. This game¡¯s given me a lot, and I¡¯ve got to try to give my all to the game.¡±

The Bombers reclaimed first place in the AL East, a half-game ahead of the Orioles, behind the power display and Cortes¡¯ sharp effort.

Supported almost instantly by Soto¡¯s career-high 36th homer, Cortes became the first Yankee since Ron Guidry (1977) to toss consecutive scoreless starts of at least seven innings without allowing a walk. To that, Cortes said: ¡°Good company.¡±

Judge has frequently remarked that he has the best seat in the house, provided an opportunity to watch Soto ply his trade from the on-deck circle. If that¡¯s true, then Soto frequently has an equally enviable vantage point to watch Judge at the dish -- from the basepaths.

Soto danced near first base after a one-out walk in the third inning, seeing Judge promptly deposit a hanging Joey Cantillo curveball into the right-field seats. It marked the 11th time this season that Soto and Judge have homered in the same game; a reliable formula, as the Yanks have won nine of those games.

¡°Two guys that are great, back to back,¡± manager Aaron Boone said. ¡°They obviously root for one another. I think they really appreciate each other; one right-handed, one left-handed. They are different in how they do it, and I think they ¡­ like doing what they did tonight.¡±

Only two other Yankees duos have hit at least 36 homers through the team¡¯s first 127 games of a season: Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig (1927, ¡¯30, ¡¯31) and Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris (1961). Good company, indeed.

¡°His power; he¡¯s just incredible,¡± Soto said. ¡°And the consistency that he has, I think that¡¯s one of the things I admire most. It doesn¡¯t matter if the game is 10 runs up or 10 runs down. He¡¯s going to take a great at-bat and try to do damage to the other team.¡±

Judge wasn¡¯t done. After Soto blew the game open in the fourth with an excuse-me, bases-clearing double, Judge hammered an Eli Morgan fastball into the right-field seats in the seventh; the righty immediately dropped to a knee on the mound, recognizing that the ball was about to be a souvenir.

It was the fourth multi-homer game of the season for Judge, who had 49 home runs through the Yankees¡¯ first 127 games in 2022 when he hit 62 homers to eclipse Roger Maris¡¯ single-season AL record. Judge has hit five homers in his last six games, six in his previous nine and 15 in his last 32.

¡°He just keeps getting a little bit better all the time, and I think that¡¯s what greatness is,¡± Boone said. ¡°You¡¯re never satisfied with who you are. There¡¯s adjustments to be made, improving on the margins. Since he¡¯s been in the league, he¡¯s pretty much been great, but the way he controls the strike zone now is to another level.¡±

There is a case to be made that Judge¡¯s 2024 may be more impressive than ¡¯22, when he received 28 of 30 first-place votes in being honored as the AL¡¯s MVP.

Having long since shrugged off a slow April, Judge paces the Majors in homers, RBIs (117), on-base percentage (.465), slugging (.722), extra-base hits (78) and total bases (322), while ranking second in average (.334) and walks (103).

¡°His season could end right now and it would be a really good, special year for him,¡± Cortes said. ¡°So with a month and 10 days left, whatever it is, it¡¯s going to be fun to watch.¡±