Judge named AL MVP; Goldschmidt wins in NL
NEW YORK: Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees won the American League MVP award on Thursday (Friday in Manila), and St. Louis Cardinals slugger Paul Goldschmidt took the National League prize.
After hitting 62 home runs this season to break the AL record, Judge easily beat out Los Angeles Angels two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani in an MVP race some thought might be close.
“It’s tough to put in words,” Judge said in an interview on MLB Network, surrounded by his beaming wife, parents and agents. “It’s an incredible moment. A lot of hard work to get to this.”
The 6-foot-7 outfielder received 28 of 30 first-place votes and two seconds for 410 points from a Baseball Writers’ Association of America panel. Ohtani, last year’s winner, was picked first on two ballots and second on the other 28 for 280 points.
Yordan Alvarez of the World Series champion Houston Astros finished third.
Judge acknowledged feeling “extremely nervous” about the announcement.
“You never want to assume anything,” he said.
Goldschmidt won the NL award for the first time after a couple of close calls earlier in his career. The first baseman garnered 22 of 30 first-place votes and eight seconds for 380 points from a separate BBWAA panel.
“It’s a great honor. But it isn’t just about me,” Goldschmidt said on MLB Network. “I mean, there’s been so many people that have helped me.”
San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado finished second with 291 points after getting seven firstplace votes and 13 seconds.
Goldschmidt’s teammate with the NL Central champion Cardinals, third baseman Nolan Arenado, came in third with 232 points. He was picked first on one ballot, second on two and third on 15.
Now a free agent, Judge broke the AL record of 61 homers set by Yankees slugger Roger Maris in 1961.
The tallest MVP in major league history, Judge also led the majors in runs (133), on-base percentage (.425), slugging percentage (.686), OPS (1.111), extra-base hits (90) and total bases (391) to help the Yankees win the AL East. He tied for the big league lead with 131 RBIs and was second in the AL with a .311 batting average.
Ohtani put together perhaps the greatest two-way season in baseball history for a third-place Angels team that finished 73-89.