Aaron Judge is doing it again. The Yankees captain has the league looking up at numbers that should not be possible two months into a season.
Through the first stretch of 2026, Judge’s OPS is approaching 1.100. That is a number you see from prime Barry Bonds or peak Mike Trout, not a player in his mid-30s into the back half of a long career.
The Yankees own the American League’s second-best record at 27-16, fueled by a league-leading plus-76 run differential. Judge is the biggest reason why.
The MVP Race Is Already Heating Up
The first MLB MVP polls of the season are out, and Judge is at the top of the American League side. The only question is whether he can hold off Tarik Skubal and the pitching wave that always shows up in MVP discussions late in the year.
On the National League side, Shohei Ohtani is running away with it because he is doing both. Judge is the guy chasing Ohtani for the league-wide story of the year.
That is the highest compliment you can pay a hitter in 2026. Ohtani is doing things baseball has never seen. Judge is keeping up.
The Ben Rice Factor
Judge is not doing this alone. Ben Rice has emerged as one of the most dangerous hitters in the Yankees lineup, forming a duo with Judge that is wrecking opposing pitching staffs.
Rice was almost outpacing Judge in home runs for a stretch before Judge caught back up. The protection he provides in the order means pitchers cannot just nibble around Judge and walk him every at-bat. They have to come into the zone.
When they come into the zone against Aaron Judge, you know what happens next.
The Yankees Are Built Different This Year
The Yankees beat the Athletics 13-8 on Sunday in absurd fashion. All 13 runs came in the third inning. That is the kind of stat line that sounds made up. The Yankees are scoring at a pace that has them on track for the highest team total in franchise history.
That is saying something for a team that has produced Murderers’ Row and Bronx Bombers eras throughout the last century.
The pitching staff is good enough to support an offense like this. Gerrit Cole is back. Carlos Rodon is healthy. The bullpen has been one of the better units in the league. This is a complete team in a way the Yankees have not been in years.
The Urgency Is Real
Judge is 34. He is signed through 2031. The window to win another title with him as the centerpiece is wide open, but it does not stay open forever. The Yankees have not won a World Series since 2009. That is the longest drought of his career.
“For Yankees captain Aaron Judge, urgency to win is same as ever,” ESPN headlined a recent profile. Judge sees it the same way the rest of the league does. The roster is built to win now.
What The Numbers Mean
An OPS approaching 1.100 over a full season would put Judge in territory only a handful of hitters in MLB history have ever reached. Ted Williams. Babe Ruth. Bonds. That is the company.
Whether Judge sustains it for 162 games is the question. Even in his MVP years, he tends to cool off in the middle months and surge again in September. Maintaining this pace requires staying healthy, something Judge has not always been able to do.
If he stays healthy, the Yankees are the favorite to come out of the American League. Judge is the reason why.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
