Aaron Judge And Shohei Ohtani Are Dominating Baseball

In the most important part of the season, Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani have demonstrated yet again why they're two of the best offensive players in Major League Baseball history.

As the Yankees fight to secure an American League East division title and a first round postseason bye, Judge has accomplished something just six other players ever have: a second season of 11 or more wins above replacement. On Wednesday night, he homered in his fourth consecutive game, giving him 57 on the season.

After a slow start to September, he's once again put himself in position to potentially become the first player outside of the steroid era to have 60 or more home runs twice in a career. And even that undersells just how good he's been offensively this year.

Per Fangraphs, Judge has contributed 94 runs above what an average hitter would be expected to produce in 2024. That's the best offensive season post integration and outside steroid-connected Barry Bonds, since 1957. Bonds' 2001, 2002 and 2004 seasons were higher…and that's it. Ever. 

Thanks in part to the decreased offensive environment in 2024, Judge's weighted runs created plus, a league and position adjusted statistic where 100 is league average, is 219. He's been nearly 120% better than a league average hitter. And it's pushed his career mark to 173, the third highest in baseball history behind Babe Ruth and Ted Williams. We're quite literally witnessing history.

And Shohei Ohtani is doing his best to keep up.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 23: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates after hitting a walk-off grand slam home run, his 40th home run of the season, against the Tampa Bay Rays at Dodger Stadium on August 23, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images)

Aaron Judge And Shohei Ohtani Are Somehow Still Underappreciated

The Los Angeles Dodgers thanks to injuries, underperformance, and a decimated starting rotation, have yet to clinch their 11th NL West division title in 12 seasons.

READ: Dodgers Keep Finding New Ways To Lose With Game-Ending Triple Play

But in their most important game of the season on Wednesday night against the San Diego Padres, Ohtani once again put the team on his back. With the game tied 2-2 in the bottom of the fourth inning and two outs, Ohtani demolished the first pitch from Dylan Cease 117mph for a double off the wall, giving the Dodgers a 3-2 lead.

After Jack Flaherty allowed a home run to Fernando Tatis Jr., Ohtani once again came to the plate in the bottom of the sixth inning, with 1st and 2nd and two outs. And once again, he absolutely demolished a ball 109mph to plate the go ahead run. After years of languishing in the baseball wilderness in Anaheim, he showed immediately what playing in meaningful games means to him.

The Dodgers held on to a 4-3 win, moving their magic number down to two. It also secured some more impressive offensive stats in 2024.

With 396 total bases, Ohtani has the most in a single season since 2001, in the heart of the steroid era. He needs just four more total bases, with four games to play, to become the 19th player in history to reach 400 in a season. The double was his 96th extra base hit of the year, the most in a season since 2013. He's also just the 12th player to reach 96 extra base hits since 1950, and the 8th since 1938 to have this many total bases and extra base hits in a season.

Oh, and he stole his 56th base of the year too. For a player with 53 home runs or more in a season, it's the highest stolen base total in history – by 32. Alex Rodriguez in 2007 had 53 homers and 24 steals. Ohtani has 53 and 56, with three games in Coors Field coming up this weekend.

Ohtani's also now nine for his last 10 with runners in scoring position, the highest batting average with RISP for any player in a 7-day time period in the last 40 years. No wonder he's 17 for his last 24 at bats. 

With the Dodgers' division and playoff bye hopes on the line, Ohtani's playing his best baseball of the season. Cementing another MVP award, and providing baseball fans another reminder to appreciate just how good he and Judge are at hitting.