New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge locked up his third AL MVP award in the last four seasons on Thursday, beating out Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh in a narrow race.
Judge slashed.331/.457/.688 with 53 home runs and 114 RBIs, while Raleigh hit 60 home runs, the most for a catcher in Major League history.
Judge’s performance helped lead the Yankees to a 94-68 record despite losing superstar Juan Soto in the offseason.
Upon winning the award, Judge was asked about Raleigh and recalled to Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News that the two had a conversation at All-Star weekend about leadership, something that stood out to Judge.
MORE: Ranking the top 27 MLB players available in free agency, from Kyle Tucker to Pete Alonso
Judge also told Phillips that he was aware of the conversation surrounding the AL MVP race this season, and feels that either player was deserving of the award.
“If Cal won and was the winner, there's an obvious reason for that. If I win, there's a reason too. So I think it's just good for the game,” Judge said.
With the award, Judge became the 11th player in Major League history to secure three or more MVPs, and the fifth Yankee, along with Yogi Berra, Alex Rodriguez, Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio.
More Yankees news:
- Yankees' Aaron Judge has the only 3 of these special seasons in history of baseball
- Yankees named as landing spot for versatile Gold Glove All-Star
- MLB insider reveals Trent Grisham's stance on future with Yankees