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After spending much of the 2024 Major League Baseball season under the spotlight, Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees took home the sport’s biggest individual awards.
Ohtani won the National League MVP over fellow finalists New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor and Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte. It is the third MVP of his career with the first two coming in the American League when he was a member of the Los Angeles Angels.
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WORLD CHAMP. RECORD SETTER. UNANIMOUS NL MVP 😤
SHOHEI OHTANI WINS HIS THIRD MVP AWARD 🏆 pic.twitter.com/UWQRfD5rPM
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Shohei Ohtani wins the MVP award UNANIMOUSLY for the 3rd time in his career 🤯 pic.twitter.com/91p3ObkMqn
Judge won this year’s AL MVP over finalists Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. and teammate Juan Soto. It is the second MVP of his career, as he also took home the award in 2022.
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AARON JUDGE IS YOUR UNANIMOUS AL MVP 🔥
The league’s HR leader stacks his SECOND MVP award 👏 pic.twitter.com/tabBz27EVG
Unfortunately for Judge and Soto, their team fell short against Ohtani’s Dodgers in the World Series. The MVP is just the latest development in an incredible season for the Los Angeles star, who thrived even though he was limited to being a designated hitter.
The Dodgers said in spring training he wasn’t going to pitch in 2024 after having elbow surgery in September 2023.
Prior to this season, a full-time DH has never won an MVP award in either league. The closest it came to happening was in 2005 when David Ortiz finished second in the voting to Alex Rodriguez.
Of course, there has never really been a player like Ohtani. He shattered all of the narratives for DH-only players by becoming the first player in MLB history to hit at least 50 homers and steal 50 bases.
Ohtani led the NL in homers (54), RBI (130), on-base percentage (.390) and slugging percentage (.646). His 411 total bases were tied with Barry Bonds in 2001 for the 16th-most in a single season in MLB history.
By FanGraphs’ wins above replacement, Ohtani’s 9.1 was by far the most in the NL. Lindor was second at 7.8. No other player in the senior circuit was worth more than seven wins.
This is the third time in four years that Ohtani has won the MVP award. He is the 12th player in MLB history with at least three MVPs. He joins Frank Robinson as the only players to win the MVP in both leagues.
Keeping in mind this could be the floor for Ohtani’s value because he was only a DH this season and is expected to go back to pitching in 2025 when he recovers from offseason shoulder surgery, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he continues to add more MVP awards to his ever-growing trophy case.
As for Judge, he had the best season of his career, which includes his MVP in 2022, with a .322/.458/.701 slash line in 158 games.
Judge led MLB in homers (58), RBI (144), walks (133), on-base percentage, slugging percentage and FanGraphs’ wins above replacement (11.2).
By OPS+, Judge’s 223 mark was the best single-season performance by any player since Barry Bonds in 2004 (263). It’s tied for the 29th-highest OPS+ in a season in MLB history.
This marks the fourth consecutive year that Judge and/or Ohtani has won the AL MVP award. Both players received the honor this year now that they play in separate leagues.
Judge’s MVP win also marks the 24th time a Yankees player has won the award, extending the franchise’s MLB record.
