Aaron Judge is not going to win the Triple Crown. Sorry new york yankees fans, the rookie outfielder is putting together a great season, but he won’t come close to winning the Triple Crown on offense. To do so, he would need to lead the American League in batting average, home runs, and RBIs, but Judge isn’t going to come close to accomplishing that feat.
Following an appearance in the All-Star Game and winning the Home Run Derby, Aaron Judge has gone cold to begin the second half of the season. He now has just one hit in 16 plate appearances following the All-Star break, putting a big dent in his batting average and on-base percentage.
While there is still time for those numbers to improve, he isn’t going to win the Triple Crown by hitting below .300 on the season.
Will Aaron Judge remain in the race for the AL MVP?
If the season ended today (July 16), Judge would be one of the favorites to win the MVP. Entering the day, Aaron Judge was leading the league with 30 home runs, second in RBIs with 66, and fifth in batting average at .319 this season. Those are impressive numbers, especially since he is doing it during his rookie season. It appears very likely that it will earn him the Rookie of the Year Award.
Other players who might challenge Aaron Judge for the MVP Award are Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, Houston Astros outfielder George Springer, and Houston Astros shortstop Carlos Correa.
Yes, there is a definite theme among the candidates, with the Astros racing toward the best record in the league this year. Having three players battling it out for the MVP could take away votes from each player, though, helping Judge among the voters.
Will Judge lead the league in any Triple Crown statistic?
A good argument could be made that not only will Aaron Judge come up short in winning the Triple Crown, but that he could fail to lead the league in any of those three statistical categories.
He is fading fast in batting average and players like Jean Segura will be way ahead of them when they get enough plate appearances. George Springer continues to crush the ball and Nelson Cruz of the Seattle Mariners has a good lineup that could help him lead the league in RBIs.
Failing to win the Triple Crown won’t take anything away from the impressive season that Judge is having at the plate.
He will still need to get his strikeout rate under control and he is still hitting the ball with a nice exit velocity, but pitchers may be starting to figure him out at the plate. If he can adjust and continue putting up strong numbers in the second half, Aaron Judge will be right in the middle of the MVP conversation if he can lead the New York Yankees to the postseason.
