Aaron Judge Attempting to Become First Triple Crown Winner Since 2012
Aaron Judge is chasing another piece of history during what’s already been an historic 2022 season.
The New York Yankees outfielder, who entered Friday’s action with 60 home runs, is primed to set a new American League record in that regard, passing Roger Maris’ record of 61. But that’s not all the 30-year-old is attempting to accomplish this season.
At the moment, Judge is the run-away favourite to capture the 2022 AL Most Valuable Player Award – the first of his career – with Los Angeles’ Shohei Ohtani likely to finish as the runner-up. That’s impressive in itself. It’s not easy to outperform the best two-way player since Babe Ruth, just ask Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Judge probably doesn’t need to boost his MVP odds, though that isn’t stopping him from looking to become the first Triple Crown winner for either league since 2012. Miguel Cabrera was the last player to achieve that feat, and he won the AL MVP that season, too.
Now, 10 years later, the four-time All-Star hopes to replicate that outcome. It won’t be easy, though, as only 10 players since 1920 – when RBIs became an official stat – have ever accomplished that season-long challenge. The last one that occurred ended a 45-season drought.
This season could be different for Judge, however, as he currently leads the AL in home runs (60), RBIs (128) and batting average (.315). The phenom also leads in SLG (.422), ISO (.387), wRC+ (211), offensive WAR (82.3) and fWAR (10.7).
With just 13 games remaining, the odds are certainly in his favour to see this thing through to the end, and rightly so. What’s better is that there isn’t much competition behind him in two of the three categories.
The towering 6-foot-7 slugger is 23 home runs up on Houston’s Yordan Alvarez, who sits second in the AL. His lead in RBIs also stands at 11, with Cleveland’s Jose Ramirez trailing behind in second. The closest race by far involves batting average, which remains up for grabs.
While Judge currently leads, Xander Bogaerts and Luis Arraez aren’t far behind, trailing by .002 and .003, respectively. All three hitters have been excellent at hitting for contact in 2022, although Judge has done that while also generating plenty of power.
Not to mention, the right-hander creates more hard contact than almost any other big leaguer, with Alvarez being the only exception this season as he leads Judge in hard-hit rate by just 0.1 percent. No. 99, however, stands as the leader in barrel rate, at 26.6 percent.
So can the 32nd overall selection from 2013 hang on to win the 2022 AL Triple Crown, joining the elite class that came before him? Perhaps, although it could come down to the wire.
One factor that should benefit Judge is that the Yankees have already clinched a playoff spot, meaning he doesn’t have to worry about missing meaningful October baseball. Unfortunately, the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins don’t share that same luxury as neither is close to a postseason position.
Arriving at the ballpark is typically way less stressful when you’ve already secured a playoff berth. It’s also usually more enjoyable, as well. For Bogaerts and Arraez, however, they’ll have to finish these last few weeks knowing their seasons are likely to end in early October.
And with the Red Sox shortstop nearing free agency, the 29-year-old’s uncertain future could potentially impact his performance down the stretch, possibly damaging his offensive results.
The one aspect that could hurt Judge’s chances of staying ahead of Bogaerts and Arraez is his walk totals. Most pitchers have opted to work around him all season, leading to 97 walks – his most since 2017 (127). Only Juan Soto has walked more times this season, with 128.
Teams have also intentionally walked Judge as many times as possible, resulting in a career-high 17 intentional free passes. That’s second in the majors to Ramirez, who’s been intentionally walked 18 times.
Of course, if pitchers continue walking Judge, it’ll limit the number of times his batting average can be impacted, both positively and negatively. It will, however, further improve his major-league-leading .422 OBP and .463 wOBA. But sadly, that’s not what wins you a Triple Crown, hitting for average does.
It’s also worth noting the often-injured slugger has played 145 of New York’s 149 games thus far. The most he’s ever played in a single season is 155 (2017). If the Yankees clinch the AL East Division relatively soon, their most valuable player will likely receive some well-deserved rest.
But if the race for this season’s AL batting title remains alive in October, you’d have to imagine Judge will be pushing to have his name in the lineup. A successful playoff run remains the priority, obviously, but it’s not often you have the chance to become a part of history.
Judge’s season has been like no other. If he breaks Maris’ home-run record, wins the AL MVP and Triple Crown, his performance will be remembered as one of the greatest of all time. And it couldn’t be coming at a more opportune time.
The Linden, Cal., native can become a free agent after this season and is enjoying one of the best walk years anyone has ever witnessed. He bet on himself on Opening Day, declining a seven-year, $213.5-million contract offer, and will soon reap the rewards of his decision.
In all likelihood, Judge will end up with a $300-plus million contract this off-season. Whether or not that comes from the Yankees remains to be seen, but at this rate, they can’t afford to lose him in free agency.
All contract negotiations will have to wait until after the playoffs, though. For a franchise that hasn’t won a World Series since 2009, nothing else matters in New York other than ending that 12-season drought.
And with Judge healthy, playing the best baseball of his professional career, there may never be a better chance for the Yankees to win it all than right now.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: Keith Allison. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.