John Smoltz on Aaron Judge vs. Barry Bonds, Dodgers' injuries, AL Central, Rickwood

John Smoltz found himself on the receiving end of nine Barry Bonds home runs during his prestigious 21-year career, but the Hall of Fame pitcher did strike out the all-time home run leader in their lone face-off during Bonds' record-setting 73-homer season.

In today's game, the closest power equivalent we have is Aaron Judge, who is slugging over .600 since his 2017 Rookie of the Year season and leads MLB this year in homers, RBIs, slugging and OPS.

As part of our weekly conversation with Smoltz, the MLB on FOX analyst provided his thoughts on how Judge compares to the game's top power threats he faced in the '90s and 2000s, what he thinks the Dodgers should do after a devastating weekend of injuries and what he makes of the surprisingly formidable American League Central as he gears up for this week's MLB showcase at Rickwood Field.

Kavner: You've had a front row seat to Aaron Judge recently, who's looking like himself again and currently leads baseball in homers, RBIs and OPS. He also appears to have dodged a bullet, as scans on his hand came back negative following a hit by pitch Tuesday night. How would you compare what he's done over the past six weeks, or even the past few years, to Barry Bonds and some of the top power guys you faced in your career? 

Smoltz: There's some similarities with Bonds, no doubt, in the power, the average and the ability to drive the ball. But I'd say the difference is, Barry was at times unpitchable. He didn't miss pitches in the zone, whereas Judge is closing up some of those chase numbers. That's why he's having the two historic years; he used to chase and swing and miss. He was one of the unique guys that many people would challenge, even when he had 62 home runs. I think he's closing