There were familiar chants of “M-V-P!” as Aaron Judge strode toward home plate in the first inning on Opening Day, digging his right cleat across the dirt of the batter’s box as he prepared for his first official at-bat since being named the 16th captain in Yankees franchise history.

It took all of two pitches for Judge to pick up where he left off. Having eclipsed Roger Maris’ single-season American League record with 62 home runs last year, Judge belted the Majors’ first of 2023, powering a Logan Webb sinker over the center-field wall at Yankee Stadium as the Yankees cruised to a 5-0 win over the Giants.

“You really don’t hear much when you hit it and you’re running the bases,” Judge said. “But once I hit home and saw my family there, the roar of the crowd, my teammates — that’s when you soak it in a little bit.”

Judge’s drive came off the bat at an exit velocity of 109.3 mph and traveled a Statcast-projected 422 feet. It also came against the Giants, one of the clubs that attempted to sign Judge this past off-season.

WFAN squarely defeated ESPN New York in the latest ratings book as major changes loom at the latter radio station. 

In the afternoon matchup that has been the most hotly contested between the two networks for the last several years, WFAN’s “Carton & Roberts” with Craig Carton and Evan Roberts ranked second in the market with a 7.5 share in men 25-54 — the demographic to which sports talk radio listeners are marketed to advertisers — while ESPN’s “The Michael Kay Show” with Kay, Don La Greca and Peter Rosenberg ranked 14th with a 2.9 share. These ratings are from 3-6:30 p.m., when the two shows overlap. 

WFAN’s “Boomer & Gio” with Boomer Esiason and Gregg Giannotti finished tops in the market with a 9.7 share in morning drive from 6-10 a.m., while ESPN New York’s combination of “DiPietro and Rothenberg” with Rick DiPietro and Dave Rothenberg and “Keyshawn, JWill and Max” with Keyshawn Johnson, Jay Williams and Max Kellerman finished No. 15 with a 2.5 share. 

The New York Yankees have reached an agreement on a new, multi-year contract with first baseman Anthony Rizzo.

Anthony Rizzo truly enjoyed being a Yankee, and getting $20 million a year to stay — $17 million each of the next two years, plus a $6 million buyout on a 2025 option will keep him in the Bronx.

Rizzo, who was acquired by the Yankees from the Chicago Cubs prior to the 2021 trade deadline, was one of the team’s most consistent hitters during the postseason, leading all players with eight RBIs and a .432 on base percentage, as well as finishing second behind only Harrison Bader with eight total hits and two home runs, which tied Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton.

Rizzo had previously signed a two-year, $32 million deal with the Yankees last offseason, which included an opt out after the first year, allowing him to test free agency this offseason.

The Parkland, Florida native hit a career best 32 home runs — a feat he accomplished three times (2014, 2016, 2017) with the Cubs — and 75 RBIs in 130 games.