New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge has unanimously been named the 2024 American League Most Valuable Player. The Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) announced the results of the vote Thursday. Judge, who previously won the award in 2022, when he set the AL single-season record for home runs, now becomes the 34th player in MLB history to win the MVP award multiple times. Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. finished second in the voting (getting all 30 second-place votes), and Judge's Yankees teammate (at least in 2024) Juan Soto finished third.
This season, Judge batted .322/.458/.701 and led the majors with 58 home runs. In addition to pacing all comers in home runs, Judge also led the majors in OPS+ (223), OBP, slugging, walks (133), RBI (144), and WAR (10.8). He also topped the AL with 392 total bases. As for Judge's 2024 OPS+ of 223, which means his park-adjusted OPS was 123% higher than the league-average mark, it's the sixth-highest figure of MLB's integrated era – i.e., since 1947. Ahead of Judge's 2024 OPS+ are four Barry Bonds seasons and Ted Williams' 233 figure in 1957.
Judge along with Soto, who's presently the most coveted free agent on the market, did the heavy lifting as the Yankees this season logged an AL-best 94 wins and claimed the AL East title. Judge and Soto combined for 99 home runs and 262 walks.
Below are the complete voting results. Voters filled out 10 spots on their ballots and 19 different players received a vote, including Tigers reliever Tyler Holton.
2024 AL MVP voting breakdown
Judge, who just wrapped up the second year of his nine-year, $360 million contract, gives the Yankees their 22nd MVP award in franchise history. That extends their all-time lead over the Cardinals, who have 18 MVP seasons to their credit.
"After having a front row seat for his 2022 MVP performance, I really couldn't envision a player having a better and more complete baseball season. But that's exactly what he accomplished in 2024," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said in a statement. "I'm beyond fortunate to be able to manage Aaron, and I look forward to watching him further cement his legacy as one of this generation's greatest players."
While Judge struggled during the Yankees' run to the AL pennant during the postseason, at least by his standards (Judge hit .184/.344/.408 with three homers in 14 playoff games), his MVP award is based on his regular-season performance. Voters submit their MVP ballots before the playoffs begin.
Witt Jr. had an outstanding season for the surprising Royals. Witt, a first-time All-Star in 2024, had 32 homers, 31 steals and an MLB-leading .332 batting average. Soto, meanwhile, entered free agency on a high note, hitting .288/.419/.569 with 41 homers. The coming weeks will determine whether or not he's teaming up with Judge again in 2025.