Judge and Soto Named Finalists for AL MVP in 2024 Season
With all the smoke from the World Series finally gone, New York Yankees fans now have a reason to celebrate again with Aaron Judge and Juan Soto named MVP finalists for the season – alongside Royals’ Bobby Witt Jr. At this point, it is expected that either of the two Yankees stars will take home the hardware.
Sure, the Yankees dropped what could have been a massive campaign capped off by a World Series win for the first time in many years. Instead, Yankees fans are sulking with a tough loss to the Dodgers, and one can consider this a consolation prize with the way the timing proved to be for Soto and Judge’s inclusion for the AL MVP finalists.
The Yankees have a lot to look forward to in the offseason, and it does seem that these two MVP finalists are also likely to be involved in the future of the team – whether it would influence their chances of winning in the long run or for them to be seen in different uniforms later on.
Judge on the Run
Aaron Judge has been hyped as the big elite performer in the American League for most of the season, and it cannot be denied that the Yankees star has been really making a lot of noise in his games over the season. Right now, he is eyeing his second career MVP award after clinching his first in 2022.
At the age of 32, Judge managed to come up with slashes of .322/458/.701 (180-for-559) with 36 doubles, 58 homers, 144 RBIs, 133 walks and 122 runs scored in 158 games. That is a massive stat line that screams MVP at this point, and it cannot be denied that Judge’s case is solid as it can be, often being compared to Shohei Ohtani’s run in the NL side.
By the end of the 2024 season, Judge was the league leader in homers, RBIs, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS (1.159), walks, times on base (322), game-winning RBIs (24), go-ahead RBIs (32) and position-player fWAR (11.2). At this point, it cannot be denied that Judge has a strong case for the MVP, and it does seem that he is expected to make his way for that award at this point in time.
Soto Fit for MVP?
Amidst all the rumors that Juan Soto may well be headed off to another club in the offseason, it is also worth noting that he has managed to come with an impressive climb in his games as well. At the age of 26, the star has managed to come up with impressive performances in the season while being able to work alongside Judge at an efficient level.
Since being acquired from the Padres last season, Soto has made a massive impact for the Dodgers with his slashing line of .288/.419/.569 (166-for-576) with 128 runs scored, 31 doubles, four triples, 41 homers, 109 RBIs and 129 walks in 157 games. At the age of 26, there’s definitely more to expect from Soto in his career.
So far, the Yankees star has nailed career-highs in runs, hits, homers, hits, total bases (328) and extra-base hits during the regular season, boosting the Yankees’ massive games right from the start.
Whoever wins the MVP – as long as it is between the two Yankees stars – fans at the Bronx are definitely going to have a piece of good news to look forward to before the offseason wildness rages on in the coming weeks.