The 2025 American League MVP race has sparked heated discussions, with fans and analysts weighing the merits of two standout stars: New York Yankees’ right fielder Aaron Judge and Seattle Mariners’ catcher Cal Raleigh. Both players delivered historic seasons, but the Yankees have made their stance crystal clear with a bold social media post that ended with four definitive words: “You be the Judge.”
Aaron Judge didn’t just have a great season—he redefined excellence. The 33-year-old slugger smashed 53 home runs, the most ever by a batting champion in baseball history. Only two other players, Jimmie Foxx in 1938 (50 homers) and Mickey Mantle in 1956 (52 homers), have ever won a batting title while hitting 50-plus homers. Judge’s .331 batting average, .457 on-base percentage, and .688 slugging percentage led all of Major League Baseball, a feat not accomplished since Miguel Cabrera’s Triple Crown in 2012.
The Yankees’ case for Judge as MVP is airtight. His 1.149 OPS towered over the AL, with the next-closest player lagging at .959. His 10.1 Fangraphs Wins Above Replacement (fWAR) outpaced the runner-up’s 9.0, and his 9.7 overall WAR led the majors, 1.7 wins ahead of the next-best player. Judge’s 36 intentional walks set an AL record, surpassing the total of every other MLB team. His .688 slugging percentage dwarfed the AL’s next-best at .589, and his .457 on-base percentage and .331 batting average left competitors in the dust at .399 and .311, respectively. Oh, and those 24 go-ahead homers? They led the league, cementing Judge as the clutch king.
Seattle’s Cal Raleigh, meanwhile, made history of his own. The 28-year-old catcher blasted 60 home runs, a single-season record for both primary catchers and switch-hitters. His 125 RBIs ranked third in MLB, and his defensive prowess helped the Mariners’ pitching staff post a respectable 3.87 ERA, good for 13th in baseball. Raleigh’s 7.3 WAR ranked fifth league-wide, and his 0.1 defensive WAR edged out Judge’s -0.5. As a catcher, a position second only to pitcher in its defensive demands, Raleigh’s two-way impact is undeniable.
Embed X: https://twitter.com/Yankees/status/1972485605130170614
The debate is compelling: Judge, the superior all-around hitter in a less demanding defensive position, versus Raleigh, the record-setting power-hitting catcher who anchors his team’s defense. Yet, the numbers tilt heavily in Judge’s favor. His 9.4 offensive WAR outshines Raleigh’s 7.7, and while Raleigh’s defensive edge is notable, the 0.6 WAR gap pales in comparison to Judge’s 1.7 overall WAR advantage.
The Yankees’ social media thread laid it out plainly, showcasing Judge’s unmatched dominance in every major offensive category. Their closing argument—“You be the Judge”—is a confident nod to the inevitable. While Raleigh’s historic season deserves applause, Judge’s transcendent performance leaves little room for debate.