"Accuracy and Power Achieved" Judge Aiming for Historic Record After 68 Years

Aaron Judge (32, New York Yankees) is on track to challenge a historic record not seen in 68 years, hitting over 30 home runs and maintaining a high batting average in the first half of the season.

As of the 3rd (Korean time), Judge has played in 85 games, posting a .321 batting average, 83 RBIs, 67 runs, 98 hits, an on-base percentage of .440, and an OPS of 1.158.

These stats place him first in the major leagues for batting average, home runs, and RBIs. Judge also leads in on-base percentage and OPS, dominating FWAR and wRC+.

The remarkable aspect is Judge’s combination of high home run numbers and a high batting average, making him a contender for the Triple Crown.

There have only been 15 instances of a Triple Crown winner in MLB history, with Miguel Cabrera being the last in 2012 and Carl Yastrzemski before that in 1967.

Winning the Triple Crown by leading the entire MLB in batting average, home runs, and RBIs has only happened five times, with Mickey Mantle being the last in 1956. It hasn't been achieved for 67 years.

Judge currently leads comfortably in home runs (32) and RBIs (83), ahead by 6 home runs and 7 RBIs from second place.

The only obstacle to the Triple Crown is the batting average. Judge's closest competitor, Shohei Ohtani, trails by just 0.001 in average. However, the bigger concern is Steven Kwan, who is close to meeting the minimum plate appearances.

As of the 3rd, Kwan has 252 at-bats with a .368 average and is expected to qualify for the leaderboard soon, potentially displacing Judge from the top spot.

However, Kwan's batting average, which once reached .398, has recently declined sharply, dropping more than 0.020 in just a week.

Meanwhile, Judge's average has risen from .282 on June 2 to .321, showing significant improvement. With half the season remaining, there's still hope for Judge.

Big swingers like Judge often struggle to maintain high batting averages due to the difficulty of maintaining accuracy with larger swings. Kwan, on the other hand, is one of the most precise hitters in MLB.

Nonetheless, Judge has a track record of achieving the seemingly impossible. Overcoming a gap of more than .040 and achieving the Triple Crown isn't out of reach for him. 먹튀검증