Giants manager reveals if he thought of having Aaron Judge in lineup

It appears San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler never spent time dreaming of having New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge in his lineup for Thursday's Opening Day clash in the Bronx. 

"This is as genuine as it gets: I haven’t thought about it one time," Kapler said of Judge possibly representing the visitors at Yankee Stadium, per Dan Martin of the New York Post. "Right now, Aaron Judge is on the Yankees. Our goal is to get him out as many times as we possibly can. He’s a great player. It’s likely he does something good in the series [and] he probably has a great season for the Yankees." 

Judge met with the Giants for free agency talks this past fall, and it was reported at one point that he was "very close to 50-50" to either returning to the Yankees or joining the club he grew up supporting as a native of Linden, California. The reigning American League Most Valuable Player ultimately re-signed with the Bronx Bombers via a nine-year, $360M deal. 

Kapler was right about Judge doing "something good in the series." The four-time All-Star selection homered in his first official at-bat as the 16th captain of the Yankees and later added an RBI single in Thursday's 5-0 New York victory. 

Meanwhile, the San Francisco skipper insisted he never got "too high or too low" amid the many stories and rumors that linked Judge with the Giants. 

"I’m waiting until something actually happens before I have emotion about it," Kapler remarked. "If you’re pursuing a free agent in the offseason, I know there’s always a little bit of a roller-coaster ride. … I wait to get fully invested."

Giants starting pitcher Logan Webb took the loss on Thursday and said earlier in the week that his employer failing to sign Judge "sucked," while Judge revealed that merely speaking with his beloved childhood club about a possible contract "was kind of a dream come true." 

That dream could become somewhat of a nightmare for Kapler and company before Sunday night arrives if Judge catches fire. The two teams next face off at Yankee Stadium on Saturday afternoon.