Aaron Judge Fixing to Join Babe Ruth and Ted Williams in Baseball History

We already knew that former MVP Aaron Judge was an incredible player, but these numbers would put him alongside some of the best players in baseball history.
New York Yankees center fielder Aaron Judge (99) reacts to hitting a home run against the Boston Red Sox during the first inning at Fenway Park on June 16.
New York Yankees center fielder Aaron Judge (99) reacts to hitting a home run against the Boston Red Sox during the first inning at Fenway Park on June 16. / Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports
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New York Yankees' star Aaron Judge is fixing to join some legends of the sport in baseball history if he can keep up this amazing pace.

Per @OptaSTATS on social media:

Aaron Judge of the @Yankees leads the majors in both RBI (64) and walks (57) this season.

Since RBI became official in 1920, the only players to lead MLB in both categories in the same season are Babe Ruth (4x) and Ted Williams (2x).

Ruth and Williams are two of the most accomplished hitters of all-time, so that's certainly great company for Judge to be in. Judge, the 2022 American League MVP, is one of the most feared hitters in all of baseball. Pitchers don't want to pitch to him and if they do pitch to him, he's often making them pay, as evidenced by those numbers.

He's also benefited greatly from having Juan Soto in the lineup in front of him. Soto was acquired this offseason in a trade from the San Diego Padres and the two have given each other enormous lineup protection.

Judge and Soto will both need to be locked in this week as the Yankees open up a new series with the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday night. The Yankees have the best record in the American League but only lead the O's by 1.5 games in the American League East and this could absolutely be an ALCS preview.

First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. ET as Albert Suarez (BAL) battles against veteran lefty Nestor Cortes Jr. (NYY).

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Brady Farkas

BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady.