In one of the least surprising developments of the offseason, New York Yankees star Aaron Judge was declared the American League Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the second time in his career after his triumph in 2022.
The All-Star outfielder, Silver Slugger, and First-Team MLB selection comfortably beat Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. in a unanimous vote. His teammate Juan Soto, currently being courted by the Yankees and half a dozen more teams, finished third.
Judge had, statistically, the best and most productive season ever by a right-handed hitter. He finished with a 218 wRC+, a .322 batting average, 58 home runs, and 144 RBI.
The Yankees captain also scored 122 runs, stole 10 bases while playing a more demanding position, center field.
The Yankees slugger put up Bonds-like numbers
Simply put, Judge put Bonds-ian numbers about 15 or 20 years after the steroids era. The fact he slugged .701 tells you everything you need to know about how dominant he was.
Even though he didn’t quite reach 60 home runs this year, it became evident that his power floor is now around 50 dingers if he can stay healthy for an entire season. He hit 62 in 2022 and would have approached 60 if he hadn’t missed 56 games in 2023.
Judge was so consistently great for the Yankees that Witt and Soto had legitimate MVP-caliber campaigns that would have netted them the award in a normal season, and neither was close to winning.
Judge adds another major award to his already impressive career. Next up on his wishlist is lifting a World Series trophy: he came close this year by actually making it to the Fall Classic for the first time and will get another shot next year.
Despite his rough postseason, Judge remains a star in his prime. We all should appreciate a truly generational power hitter with unmatched numbers.