New York Attorney General calls out to Apple TV+ to allow all New Yorkers to watch tonight's Yankees game

New York Attorney General Letitia James started the week with a $250 million civil lawsuit against the Trump Organization on September 21, alleging years of fraudulent business practices. She ended her week on another controversial note, though one of far less national significance: She's calling on Apple TV+ to make the Sept. 23 New York Yankees game available for all New Yorkers to watch without a paid subscription. Specifically, to watch it on the local Yankees-focused cable channel YES.

The story for those of you who don't follow Buster Olney on Twitter or tune in to ESPN throughout the day: Tonight, Yankees star slugger and outfielder Aaron Judge might hit his 61st home run of the season, which ties it with the record Roger Maris set in 1961 for the most home runs ever by any player on any team in an MLB season until this point, beating the previous record of 60 set by Babe Ruth in 1927.

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Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals broke the record in 1998 with 70 homers; Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants broke this record in 2001 with 73. These results are widely discredited by baseball fans because both players used performance-enhancing substances, but their results are not officially stricken from the record. /p>

So there's a lot at stake with the game on September 23, the 150th game of the season, and New Yorkers can only watch it with an Apple TV+ subscription, which explains James in Albany:< /p>

“History is on the march as Aaron Judge electrifies Yankees fans and all who love baseball. Denying millions of New Yorkers and fans across the country the opportunity to watch Aaron Judge take succession is fake and unfair. New Yorkers paid their cable bills expecting to see live sports programming. Now they are being asked to do more if they want to watch this thrilling chase and game. potentially historic. That's why I'm calling on Apple and MLB to reach a fair deal with the YES Network so fans can watch what we all hope is history tonight."

It should be noted that there is a bit more history involved: Maris' record 61st home run in 1961 came in the last game of that season, Game 162. For a time, the baseball nitpickers thought that was not the case. as valid as Ruth's 60 homers, as he achieved that record in what was in 1927 still a 154-game season. If he had played eight more games, he might have topped 61 homers that season. Initially, Maris' achievement even appeared with an asterisk in official MLB records. It eventually fell and most people accepted Maris' record. The prospect of him breaking Ruth's mark inspired so much hostility from Ruth's fans that Maris received death threats.

Judge, 30, only signed a one-year contract with the Yankees this season. He's been with the Yankees since 2016, but is widely expected to take an even bigger payday with another team — the Dodgers? Giants ? the cubs? - next season. So this may well be Yankees fans' last chance to see such a feat for some time. If Judge equals Maris' record, he will have done so in game 150, in fewer games than Babe Ruth took to break his record, and 12 games faster than Maris. For those who still believe the asterisk was necessary, Judge's achievement would definitely break Ruth's record.

Whether Letitia James' statement is worthy of the New York Attorney General's office is another matter. She's running for re-election in November, and that's certainly red meat for the Pinstripe Alley constituency.

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