The Yankees took a gamble on a 6-foot-7 outfielder 3 years ago, and he's become the scariest hitter in baseball

Behind the unexpected surge has been the promising play of a few young prospects — quite the change for the notoriously cash-happy, star-studded Yankees — and none more so than 25-year-old right fielder Aaron Judge.

In less than one season in the majors, Judge has become perhaps the most fearsome hitter in baseball.

Through 26 games, he's hitting .330 with a .587 slugging percentage and .939 on-base plus slugging. His 13 home runs leads the league and is the most by a rookie through 26 games in MLB history, and his 27 RBIs is tied for the most in the AL. His 10 home runs in April was an MLB rookie record. According to ESPN, Judge has six homers of 425 feet or more, the most in baseball.

The sudden rise has been a bit unlikely, as Judge, at 6-foot-7 and 282 pounds, represented something of a gamble for the Yankees when they took him with the 32nd pick in the 2013 draft.

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told the New York Post's Kevin Kernan how the analytics alone would have suggested Judge would be a risky pick.

"From an analytic standpoint you try to make safe bets, and Judge coming out of college was 6-7, and he had a lot of strikeouts, and from a historical standpoint in this game, being 6-7, is obviously a detriment," he said.

According to Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal, only 12 players 6-foot-6 or taller have made 1,000 plate appearances in MLB history.

There are concerns with players' swing mechanics when they're as big as Judge. As ESPN's Keith Law broke down on Buster Olney's podcast, big players can have "long" swings and get jammed up inside. Billy Beane of the A's told Rosenthal that contact was an issue for Judge — he had power when he could hit the ball, but whiffing was common. Even last season, Judge struck out 42 times in 84 at-bats.

Still, according to Rosenthal, the Yankees, like Beane and Judge's college coaches, were impressed with Judge's power, athleticism, and mental approach. It's paying off.

As with Barry Bonds before him, there is something extra captivating when Judge rips the ball.

According to Law, Judge has adjusted his swing at every level. Yankees manager Joe Girardi recently pointed out that Judge had focused on his legs more in his stance and stopped kicking his legs on swings. Pitchers will adjust to Judge, but he has shown the ability to adjust right back.

"He has become more disciplined, more selective, and is forcing pitchers to be even more precise," Law said. "I still think there are ways to pitch to Judge, but if you miss, this is what happens. I really do believe ... Judge is going be a star for a long time, because his ability to make that adjustment to control the strike zone enough where pitchers have very little margin for error is real."

We're not even an eighth of the way through the MLB season, but for now, he's raking at a historic level and making the Yankees, improbably, a darling of MLB.