ANAHEIM, Calif. — Mike Batesole made the drive south from Fresno, Calif., to Anaheim on Friday to see one of his pupils play in the major leagues for the first time.
“Whenever one of your former players makes it there, a tiny piece of you feels like you made it, too,’’ Batesole, the Fresno State head coach, said of Yankees rookie Aaron Judge.
Though Batesole’s own playing career “petered out at Double-A” with the Dodgers two decades ago, he has an idea of some of the challenges ahead of Judge — both on and off the field.