Aaron Judge has been on a completely different level than anyone else in the majors this season. The New York Yankees slugger has been one of the most dangerous hitters in the majors, an MVP candidate that has put the team on his shoulders and carried them to the best record in the game. While his contributions have extended beyond his offensive capabilities, Judge’s powerful bat is receiving a great deal of attention.
And it is easy to see why. Judge has produced a 187 OPS+ in his 412 plate appearances entering Monday, leading the majors with 37 homers and 80 runs scored. His 81 RBI lead the American League and he has even chipped in nine steals. Judge has been a force until himself this year.
One stat to show why Aaron Judge is dominating for New York Yankees
Judge is not just a darling when it comes to traditional stats. He is also leading the majors in barrels, his 66 barreled balls to this point easily surpassing Kyle Schwarber in second. As Codify Baseball pointed out, Schwarber is actually closer to the 26th player on that list than he is to Judge.
It should not be a surprise that his Statcast page is covered in red. Judge is in the 100th percentile in hard hit rate, average exit velocity, max exit velocity, barrel percentage, and expected on base percentage and slugging. He has punished virtually every pitcher he has faced this season as there does not seem to be a single offering, aside from one high and two feet from the plate, that is safe.
He does not show any signs of slowing down either. Judge launched four homers while posting an absurd 1.776 OPS in his 23 plate appearances over the first five games after the All Star Break. Even having that time off and the exhibition itself could not slow him down.
Aaron Judge has been on an incredible run in 2022. The New York Yankees slugger is dominating in almost every possible aspect.