Call to the pen
Fansided

MLB: The American League MVP race is heating up

By Scott Henry

Jul 22, 2022; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; New York Yankees center fielder Aaron Judge (99) during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 22, 2022; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; New York Yankees center fielder Aaron Judge (99) during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Aaron Judge hit his 41st home run on Friday night in the grand-slam fashion. He and Babe Ruth are the only players in New York Yankees history to have 41 home runs in the first 101 games. Per The New York Times, Judge is outpacing Roger Maris and Ruth the year they hit 61 and 60, respectively.

Judge hit his 42nd on Saturday, becoming the second-fastest player in AL/NL history to reach 200 career homers (behind Ryan Howard).

Pretty good timing for Judge to chase the home run record, as he is an unrestricted free agent next year. One of the great storylines the rest of this year and into the offseason will be the New York Yankees backing up the money truck for him.

Another great storyline will be the American League MVP race

Judge currently holds a 189 wRC+, which is 89% better than your league-average hitter. He has 89 RBIs and the Yankees have 64 games left. If he breaks the non-asterisk home run record of 61, can anybody stop him from receiving the AL MVP?

Enter Shohei Ohtani, the defending AL MVP. Ohtani is having a modest year at the plate for his standards, he still holds a 129 wRC+, 21 home runs, 11 stolen bases, and a .826 OPS. On the mound, he’s been much more impressive, sporting a 2.81 ERA, 2.36 FIP, and 13.14 K/9. He honestly has a chance of winning the AL Cy Young award if he falls short of MVP.

Judge’s 189 wRC+ has to be the best in the league, right? No, Yordan Alvarez currently holds a ridiculous 208 wRC+. Alvarez has a higher OPS (1.110), Batting average (.316), and lower K% (18.3) than Judge. Alvarez has roughly 80 less plate appearances than Judge, and currently 30 home runs and 69 RBI.

Alvarez will likely be hurt in the race by his many at-bats at DH, especially when you are up against a DH that pitches every six days as well.

Next. Can the Angels afford to extend Ohtani?. dark

Who is your pick for AL MVP? Let us know in the comments section below.

Home/Houston Astros