Aaron Judge might have been in one of his toughest slumps as a professional, but his recent weekend performance elevated him to new historic levels.
In the New York Yankees’ four-game series against the Boston Red Sox, Judge went 5-for-13, hitting two home runs, a double, driving in six RBIs, drawing three walks, and even stealing a base. This came after a rough 16-game stretch where he failed to hit a home run and batted just .207.
Despite that slump, Judge is still hitting an impressive .321 for the season and leads all of Major League Baseball with 53 home runs, 132 RBIs, 122 walks, a .455 on-base percentage, .692 slugging percentage, an eye-popping 1.147 OPS, and 364 total bases. His WAR (Wins Above Replacement) stands at 9.7 according to Baseball Reference, while FanGraphs rates him even higher at 10.0 through 148 games.
Aaron Judge has officially reached 10.0 fWAR. pic.twitter.com/Fo3vfxp8Ro
— nugget chef (@jayhaykid) September 16, 2024
Justin Havens of Underdog Fantasy compiled a list of Judge’s remarkable accomplishments now that his fWAR has hit 10.0.
To start, Judge’s 2024 season is one of only 10 individual 10.0-fWAR seasons by a batter in the Wild Card era, which began in 1994. In the past 20 years, only three players—Judge, Mookie Betts, and Mike Trout—have reached this elite milestone.
Having previously posted an 11.1 fWAR in 2022, Judge has now become the first player to achieve multiple 10.0-fWAR seasons within a three-year span since Mike Trout did so in 2012 and 2013. Additionally, he is the first Yankees player to hit this mark twice in three years in nearly 70 years. The last player to accomplish this for the Yankees was the legendary Mickey Mantle, who surpassed an 11.3 fWAR in both 1956 and 1957.
All of these accolades only add to Judge’s case for securing his second AL MVP award in three years. His biggest competition appears to be Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., who currently holds an 8.9 bWAR and a 9.7 fWAR.
Judge and the Yankees have Monday off before heading on the road to face the Seattle Mariners, with the series opener set for Tuesday at 9:40 p.m. ET.
