BOSTON — My very unscientific, extremely informal American League MVP poll posed little chance for real resolution inside the Yankees clubhouse. The top two MVP contenders reside there, separated by only a few feet inside this rundown locker room, and by no more than that in the actual race.
The AL MVP in reality — and of course in that room, too — is either slugging center fielder Aaron Judge or slugging right fielder Juan Soto. It’s close enough that the vast majority of about a dozen Yankees personnel canvassed Sunday called it a draw or declined to choose.
One said Judge flat out, two seemed to lean Judge, and one said Soto. Other than that: blank ballots.
Cases certainly also could be made for Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson, Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. and Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez. But a check of the stat leaderboard is clear. Judge is first in most categories, Soto second.
If the voting took place today, one Yankee should win and the other should finish second. But as to which one, most Yankees wouldn’t say.
Manager Aaron Boone responded to my question by telling me I’m MVP. He’s funny (in his own way).
Giancarlo Stanton said he’d have to defer to me since I’m the one with an actual vote. Not necessarily, I explained to Stanton.
I’ve only voted for MVP about four times in 35-plus years of doing this. Each vote goes to two writers in every AL city, and even though writers are unfortunately trending toward extinction, I usually work in cities with way more than two writers so I generally get a different vote or am benched altogether. (I probably should have had more MVP votes, but since most of the players I’ve voted for later turned out to be steroid guys, I secretly suspect the voting committee has me on double-secret probation.)
Anyway, Stanton cagily dragged me into my rather tedious explanation about the voting process instead of actually choosing between Judge and Soto. Stanton is a clever guy so I figured he’d find a way to dodge the question.
Anyway, I pressed on.
Yankees bench coach Brad Ausmus, a Dartmouth man, introduced some Ivy League equivocation.
“I think it’s a New York Yankee,” Ausmus said.
“I like both,” catcher Jose Trevino said. “Thankfully, they’re on our team.”
Third-base coach Luis Rojas ask if there could be “co” MVPs?
One of the two most definitive answers came from Judge, who wasn’t afraid to play jury. He selected Soto. (Soto was unavailable pregame and in a hitters’ meeting, though I’m not certain why he needs that.)
“Juan’s definitely got my vote based on what he’s done all year, coming up big to making great defensive plays,” Judge told The Post. “The guy’s always on base for me. He makes my job a lot easier. He and [Anthony] Volpe are the engine of this offense.”
Henderson, Witt and Ramirez are all putting together MVP-type seasons. But as to who’s actually the MVP so far (Judge did note it’s pretty early), it’s got to be one of the two Yankees, who are doing a Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig thing in their first-year pairing.
Judge, who was MVP in 2022 when he set the AL home run record, and Soto are 1-2 in the key categories, and the statistical case slightly favors Judge. Judge is one to Soto’s two in slugging percentage (.681 to .599), OPS (1.108 to 1.035), runs created (76 to 71) and adjusted batting wins (40 to 34) while Soto is one to Judge’s two in on-base percentage (.435 to .427) and times on base (138 to 137).
Judge has bigger power numbers, he gets a slight edge as a fine center fielder compared to Soto’s underrated right field, and unlike Soto, he usually doesn’t have a future Hall of Famer batting behind him (Soto has Judge behind him.)
However, Soto has been great from Day 1, when his great throw saved the opener against hated Houston. And Soto is the one who transformed the lineup that wasn’t even average last year. (That point’s probably unfair to Judge, who’s done it alone at times over the past few years.)
It feels like some in the Yankees lineup are trying to emulate Soto by being more discerning at the plate — though no one but no one can be him. Who else could possibly be so comfortable with two strikes?
“If he’s not the best hitter in the game he’s right up there,” Judge said about Soto. “He has incredible bat-to-ball skills. He has such a great eye that he’s not afraid to take it with two strikes, even against guys he hasn’t seen before. He doesn’t mind taking it to two strikes. Two strikes, 3-2, 0-0, the guy’s a great hitter.”
Judge was pretty convincing in the case he made for Soto. In addition to being a great player, Judge is also a great captain. And that’s probably about all I proved with my silly survey.
