Judge places 2nd for AL MVP behind Altuve

Aaron Judge's remarkable season of "All Rise" yielded a unanimous selection as the winner of the Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year Award in the American League, but the Yankees slugger finished as the runner-up to the Astros' Jose Altuve for the AL Most Valuable Player Award, which was announced Thursday on MLB Network. The Indians' José Ramírez finished third.
Judge was vying to become the first Yankees MVP since Alex Rodriguez (2007), while looking to join Fred Lynn (1975) and Ichiro Suzuki (2001) as the only players to bring home the MVP and Rookie of the Year Awards in the same season.
"He deserved it from the beginning, what he did to put Houston in the position to go to the postseason and then to go on and win the World Series," Judge said of Altuve. "What an incredible accomplishment. I couldn't be happier for him."

In 155 games, Judge compiled a .284/.422/.627 slash line while leading the AL in homers (52), runs scored (128) and walks (127), helping the Yankees finish one win shy of the World Series in what was widely expected to be a rebuilding year in the Bronx.
:: AL Most Valuable Player voting totals ::
Altuve led the Majors with a .346 batting average and paced the AL with 204 hits, but a strong case was made for Judge. The 6-foot-7 right fielder from Linden, Calif., had a leg up on Altuve in RBIs (114 to 81), on-base percentage (.422 to .410), slugging percentage (.627 to .547) and OPS+ (171 to 164). Altuve posted an 8.3 WAR, just ahead of Judge's 8.1 WAR.
"You know, I'm still sitting back trying to think about it all happened this first year," Judge said after winning the AL Rookie of the Year Award. "From battling in Spring Training to the highs and lows throughout the season, to the playoff run we had, coming up short, it's what you dream about. I wouldn't change a thing, the ups and downs, how things happened this year. It all molds you into who you are now. It was an incredible year."

Since 2003, five of the eight players who led or tied for their league lead in both home runs and runs scored won the MVP Award, with the other three finishing second. Over the same span, five of the seven players who recorded at least 120 runs, 45 homers and 100 RBIs in a season were named MVP.

Judge also led the Majors with 208 strikeouts, but despite a six-week summer swoon that saw him strike out in a Major League record 37 consecutive games, Judge bounced back strong. He cracked 15 homers in a terrific September, ending the year on a career-long 13-game hitting streak.
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Fans can still vote Judge as Best Major Leaguer in the Esurance MLB Awards, where baseball legends, media, front-office personnel and fans come together to pick the winners, with postseason accomplishments factored in. Then tune in Friday at 8 p.m. ET on MLB Network and MLB.com as this year's best stars and moments are revealed.