It has been an exceptional week for Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani, even by their already impressive standards. Judge hit seven home runs in six games for the New York Yankees, bringing his season total to 51. He is on track to surpass 60 home runs for the second time in three years, potentially breaking the American League record of 62 set in 2022.
Ohtani, on the other hand, became only the sixth player ever to achieve 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases in a single season, accomplishing this feat before the end of August. One of his standout moments was hitting a walk-off grand slam for the Los Angeles Dodgers against Tampa Bay, marking his 40th home run of the season.
While there has never been a player with a 50-50 performance, Ohtani is showing potential to achieve it. Their remarkable performances are further highlighted by some impressive stats:
1. Judge’s OPS+ stands at 230, with the league average being 100. Only three players in history have finished a season with an OPS+ above 230: Barry Bonds, Babe Ruth, and Ted Williams.
2. Ohtani’s Power-Speed Number, a combination of homers and steals, is currently at 40.5, placing him at ninth all-time for a single season.
In a Triple Crown race, Judge leads in home runs and RBIs, but his .333 batting average is slightly behind Bobby Witt Jr. from Kansas City. On the National League side, Marcell Ozuna from Atlanta is leading in batting average and shares the RBI lead with Ohtani. With 37 home runs, Ozuna is close behind Ohtani, making him a contender for the NL Triple Crown.
On a notable performance note, Toronto’s Bowden Francis struck out 12 batters in a win against the Los Angeles Angels, with only one hit allowed in eight-plus innings. Despite a tough season for the Blue Jays, they have shown improvement by winning six of their last eight games.
In a surprising turn of events, the Seattle Mariners, who recently fired their manager, made an impressive comeback against San Francisco. Trailing 5-1 in the eighth inning, the Mariners rallied with six consecutive singles to tie the game. They eventually won 6-5 in the 10th inning on a single by Leo Rivas.
Looking back in history, in 1980, George Brett achieved a 9.4 WAR in 117 games while hitting .390 for Kansas City, tying the notable record.