Analyzing Aaron Judge’s MVP Seasons

Along with Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge is pretty universally recognized as one of the top two players in Major League Baseball. Both are two-time defending MVPs. Judge is the best player on the sport’s most revered franchise: the New York Yankees. Number 99 already has a career resume that reads like a Billy Joel playlist: 368 home runs, seven All-Star selections, five Silver Sluggers, three AL home-run crowns, a career OPS of 1.028, an AL batting title, and a Rookie of the Year award. That’s just a small peek behind the Judge’s robe.

Analyzing Aaron Judge’s MVP Seasons

Yes, a World Series title has so far eluded this bomber in the Bronx, but Aaron is already high on several all-time Yankee stat lists. If his next four seasons mirror the last four, Judge will potentially be the greatest Yankee ever. Speaking of those last four seasons, three of them resulted in AL MVP trophies. That’s what we are here to discuss.

These superlative MVP campaigns were all spectacular in their own right, but if you were forced to pick, which one was the best? It’s a bit like choosing your favorite Bond girl, but that’s what we will attempt to do. Without getting overly arcane and sabermetric, let’s examine Aaron’s three MVP years and then make a Judge’s ruling.

2022 American League MVP (notable stat: an AL record of 62 home runs)

Aaron Judge’s first MVP season is best known for him breaking the single-season home run record in the American League. That year, this sturdy outfielder led the AL in over a dozen categories … homers (62), RBIs (131), runs (133), WAR (10.8), walks (111), OBP (.425), slugging % (.686), and OPS (1.111) … to name a few. The Bombers won the AL East as Judge passed two Yankees icons on his way to the hallowed mark. His 10.8 WAR was the best in MLB since Bonds’ in 2002. Only 13 position players in league history have had a single-season WAR of 10.8+. The current captain in the Bronx has done it twice.

2024 American League MVP (notable stat: a .458 on-base %)

For the second time in three seasons, Aaron Judge won the AL MVP award in 2024. Once again, he led the American League in most vital categories: 58 homers, 144 ribbies, a 10.8 WAR, and many more. His numbers in OBP (.458), slugging % (.701), and OPS (1.159) were all career highs. Compared to his previous MVP year, this loud presence in the navy pinstripes raised his batting average from .311 to .322 and boosted his walks from 111 to 133. This version of the Yanks also won the AL East and reached the World Series for the first time in 15 years.

2025 American League MVP (notable stat: an AL-best .331 batting average)

Aaron Judge’s season in 2025 isn’t as gaudy as the previous two MVP performances, but it was mighty impressive. Although his 53 homers and 114 RBIs didn’t lead the American League, he did lead in many other main stats. This time, he also added a batting crown with a career-best .331 average. Another stat of distinction and marked improvement for Judge was his strikeout total of 160. Yes, 160 is still a high number, but it is nearly 50 K’s less than his near-MVP year in 2017 with about the same number of plate appearances. It’s also important to note that this native Californian was plagued with a serious elbow issue for much of the year. This limited him to 152 games and hampered his production a tad as well.

This Judge’s Ruling

Again, choosing the best of these three MVP seasons from Aaron Judge was like eating at a Brazilian steakhouse. If I had a Louisville Slugger to my head, I would choose 2024. The home runs were slightly less than 2022, but he replicated that stellar 10.8 WAR and was better in walks, batting average, OBP, slugging %, and OPS. Feel free to peruse those stats yourself and make your own Judge’s ruling.