Shohei Ohtani And Aaron Judge Are Chasing History
Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge were already arguably the two best hitters in Major League Baseball. And somehow they've gotten even better in 2024. And in a year when offense has been difficult to come by, both are chasing their own unique version of history.
Judge already had one of the best offensive seasons in baseball history in 2022, hitting 62 home runs with a .686 slugging percentage. He's been better in 2024. With 35 games remaining, Judge is hitting .334/.465/.722. And after two more home runs in Wednesday's win over the Cleveland Guardians, Judge is up to 47 home runs on the season.
That puts him just two behind his pace in 2022 through 127 team games. And his .722 slugging percentage, according to Jeff Passan, is the highest number from a player who has not been linked to steroids since 1957.
Even more impressively, if Judge is able to reach 60 home runs in a season for the second time in his career, he'd be just the third player in baseball history to hit 60 homers in multiple seasons. The other two, Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, were also linked to steroids.
No one without some level of performance enhancement has ever hit 60 homer runs twice in a career. Aaron Judge is just 13 home runs away. Then there's Shohei Ohtani.
LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani rounds third base to score in the third inning against the Seattle Mariners at Dodger Stadium on Aug. 21, 2024. Photo: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Shohei Ohtani Chasing History Of His Own
On top of all of his exceptional hitting ability, power, and pitching prowess, Shohei Ohtani has another underrated skill: speed.
Ohtani has been typically excellent in his first season in Los Angeles, hitting 39 home runs with a .610 slugging percentage and six wins above replacement. In Wednesday night's 8-4 win over the Seattle Mariners, though, he moved one step closer to another form of statistical success. He stole his 39th base of the season.
With 34 games remaining on the Dodgers schedule, Ohtani's just one homer and one steal away from a 40/40 season. Only five hitters have ever hit 40 homers and stolen 40 bases in the same year, including Ronald Acuna Jr. in 2023 who went 40/70.
But Ohtani still has a chance at making an even more rare kind of history; a 50/50 season.
Yes, he'd need to hit 11 homers and steal 11 bases in 34 games, but his current pace puts him right on track to do just that. No one in baseball history's ever done that. Ohtani could.
Runs per game in baseball are down by nearly half a run in 2024 compared to 2023. Pitchers are better than they've ever been, with higher velocity, better pitch design, and higher spin rates. Yet Ohtani and Judge continue to demonstrate why they're two of the best players the sport has ever seen. Remarkable power, consistency, speed and desire to improve. It's paying off in 2024, maybe historically so.