Is New York Yankees Superstar Having Greatest Offensive Season Ever?

New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge is putting together an all-time season.

Aug 23, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees center fielder Aaron Judge hits a solo home run. / Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

What a week for Aaron Judge.

The New York Yankees slugger played in six games last week (all at Yankee Stadium), going deep in five of them. After homering four times and driving in seven runs against the Cleveland Guardians, he followed it up with three homers and five RBIs against the Colorado Rockies.

With his two-homer game against the Rockies on Sunday, Judge finished the week with seven big flies, 12 RBI, a .381 batting average and an absurd 1.429 slugging percentage. All eight of his hits went for extra bases.

Judge is now up to 51 homers, 123 RBI and a .333/.465/.736 batting line, making him the clear frontrunner for AL MVP (sorry, Juan Soto). With his 106 walks, the hulking 32-year-old is the first player in MLB history to reach 50 homers, 120 RBI and 100 walks before the start of September, and he still has five games remaining in August.

Aaron Judge is the first player in MLB history with 50+ HR, 120+ RBI and 100+ BB before September

— New York Yankees Stats (@nyyankeesstats) August 25, 2024

Given Judge's historic numbers, it's fair to wonder if he's having the greatest offensive season of all time.

Following Judge's big game on Sunday, his OPS is up to 1.201. Excluding strike-shortened seasons and players connected to performance-enhancing drugs, the last time a player topped a 1.200 OPS was Boston Red Sox legend Ted Williams (1.257) in 1957.

Since Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947, that's the only instance of a non-PED player posting an OPS above 1.200 in a full season. Because of injuries and a shorter schedule, however, Williams only logged 132 games and 547 plate appearances in 1957, finishing his age-38 campaign with 38 home runs, 87 RBI, a .388/.526/.731 slash line and 9.7 WAR.

Meanwhile, Judge has already accrued 577 plate appearances and close to 10 WAR over 129 games. Assuming he stays healthy in September, the six-time All-Star should raise all of those numbers considerably by the end of the season.

Furthermore, Judge is currently on pace for 63 homers, which would break his AL single-season record of 62 from 2022. He needs 12 long balls over the Yankees' final 31 games, which is definitely doable for a player who's smashed 16 homers over his last 27 games. If he stays off the injured list, he'll have a chance.

In other words, Judge is having the greatest season by a right-handed hitter since World War II. Depending on how he finishes the year, it could be the best period.