Aaron Judge Nearing AL Record After Making Yankees History

The seven-time All-Star has an MLB-high 30 intentional walks, which is three behind the AL record. Hall of Famers Ted Williams and John Olerud notched 33 in 1957 and 1993, respectively.

Judge is still sixth in baseball with 97 RBI despite clearing the field in intentional free passes. The former Rookie of the Year has more than the second-place Jose Ramirez, and 14 more than the third-place Shohei Ohtani. Teams often put him on first base with runners in scoring position, robbing him of more RBI opportunities.

Should Aaron Judge Win AL MVP?

The only man standing between Judge and his third AL MVP Award is Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, who leads baseball with 50 homers and is third with 107 RBI. The 28-year-old now has the record for single-season home runs by a primary catcher.

Raleigh is also fourth with a .932 OPS, but is hitting just .240. Meanwhile, Judge tops MLB with a .324 batting average and 1.117 OPS while also being tied for fourth with 43 homers. Furthermore, the California native is second with 97 walks and first with a 7.2 WAR, while his counterpart is tied for eighth with 81 walks and fifth with a 5.7 WAR.

The main argument for Raleigh is that he tops Judge in homers and RBI while also playing a more important position. Catcher is the second-most significant spot behind pitcher, while Judge's normal place in right field is among the least consequential. The latter player has also exclusively been a designated hitter since August 5 due to an elbow injury, which caused him to miss almost two weeks.

However, Judge could wrap this conversation up by lessening the gap in home runs and RBI over the final month of the season, which would weaken Raleigh's case.