Yankees' Spencer Jones provides new hope after Aaron Judge injury

Yankees' Spencer Jones provides new hope after Aaron Judge injury originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

>In Spencer Jones' first MLB stint with the New York Yankees, he batted .167 and struck out in half of his at bats.

>Things went much better on Friday night in Jones' return to the majors in place of the injured Aaron Judge.

>Jones went 3-for-3 in the Yankees' loss to the Boston Red Sox.

>“I was excited,” Jones said after the game, via MLB.com. “It’s the rivalry, a lot of fans in the stands. I felt pretty good. I’m here, so I’m just going to keep doing my thing.”

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>Jones began his night with a single.

>He then hit an RBI double, his first extra-base hit in the major leagues.

>Jones singled for a second time in the sixth inning.

>It had to be a big confidence booster for Jones, who now knows a little bit better what to expect in MLB.

>“I think the first time around, it’s a lot of new information – a lot of new sights, a lot of new things,” Jones said. “The last couple of weeks gave me some time to think about things and the way I wanted to play. Being able to internalize that and get the call back was good for me.”

>The Yankees know that Jones will still strike out, and that he won't get a hit every time he's at the plate.

>But this was a hugely encouraging sign. The absence of Judge looms extremely large. The Yankees have to get at least some quality production out of Jones just to tread water in the meantime.

>And after Jones really struggled to put the pieces together in his first foray into the big leagues, he now looks much more like he belongs.

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