Judge rings NYSE bell, brings family to Bronx

NEW YORK — Back home in little Linden, Calif. (pop. 1,784), the Cherry Capital of the World, they are trying to figure out how to combat floating water weeds on the vital tributary that reaches far inland to that farming community from the Pacific Ocean.

That ongoing challenge seemed literally a world away from the bustling trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange, where Linden’s own Aaron Judge and his parents, Wayne and Patricia, found themselves among autograph-seekers on Wednesday morning.

They immersed themselves in the Big Apple for the past few days, from The Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall to this excursion to the nation’s financial epicenter, where the Yankees’ No. 4 prospect, as ranked by MLBPipeline.com, helped his performance-equipment sponsor, Under Armour, and Major League Baseball ring the Opening Bell. It is partly his town now, and maybe moreso in months and years ahead.

“We came up a couple days early and kind of checked out the city,” Judge said. “During the season, we’re working, so you don’t really get a chance. The past couple days we checked out the city and I’m glad my parents are here for it.

“Especially here [at the NYSE], where there are a lot of Yankee fans. That’s been great so far. I’ve been meeting people, and saying hi, and it’s just getting me excited for next year.”

Next season, the 6-foot-7 slugger could be the Yankees’ starting right fielder. A week ago, Hal Steinbrenner, the Yankees’ managing general partner, discussed how “emotional” he had been over Judge’s homer in his first Major League plate appearance in 2016, and said he is counting on Judge to assume the right field role.

Steinbrenner said Judge will enter 2017 with something to prove after hitting .179 (15-for-84) with 42 strikeouts in his first 27 Major League games.

“He’s got some work to do. He knows that,” Steinbrenner said in the first part of a two-part interview …

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