Athletics slugger has surprising assessment of Yankees' Aaron Judge

New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge, a two-time American League Most Valuable Player, is a strong contender for the award again this fall and is widely regarded as one of the best hitters in Major League Baseball.

Thus, it's somewhat surprising that Athletics slugger Brent Rooker suggested during a recent chat with Max Goodman of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com that some may not fully appreciate how special Judge has been over the past few seasons when healthy. 

"At this point, nothing really catches you off guard with him," Rooker said about Judge. "We get asked all the time, 'Who do you think the most underrated player in the league is?' It’s a ridiculous answer, but I think Judge may be the most underrated player in the league. I think a lot of people don’t fully appreciate what he’s able to do year in and year out over the last nine years, the level of production is just kind of on a different level than really anybody else in the league."

Per ESPN stats, Judge entered the All-Star break leading the league with a .355 batting average and a 1.194 OPS. Additionally, he was second in the league with 35 home runs and 81 RBI. 

According to Baseball Savant, Judge began Thursday leading the league with a .467 expected weighted on-base average (xwOBA) for the season. To compare, New York Mets outfielder Juan Soto was second on the list with a .455 xwOBA. 

Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt got a good look at Judge and Soto as Cleveland fell to the Yankees in the 2024 AL Championship Series. 

"Judge is an elite hitter who has the ability to hit the ball far," Vogt said. "He’s not a power hitter. He’s a great hitter with power. It’s unbelievable to me how short he stays and just how under control he is. He knows the strike zone, doesn’t chase a whole lot."

San Diego Padres infielder Tyler Wade, Judge's former teammate with the Yankees, went further and referred to the 33-year-old as "the best right-handed hitter of our generation." Wade may be right, as ESPN's David Schoenfield noted on Thursday that Judge "has a chance for only the sixth 12-WAR season by a position player" this year. 

"Three of the previous five are by Babe Ruth," Schoenfield added. 

As of Thursday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook had Judge as a massive -650 betting favorite to claim the AL MVP Award for this season. It seems that Texas Rangers designated hitter Joc Pederson wouldn't be surprised to see those odds. 

"He’s literally one of the best hitters ever,” Pederson said of Judge. "It’s not like, 'Oh yeah, he’s really good.' No. Barry Bonds is the best hitter ever, and he’s putting up the same career numbers, which is bonkers. We might not see it ever again. It’s unbelievable."