Judge, Goldschmidt win Hank Aaron Award

Major League Baseball announced Wednesday that New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge and St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt won the 2022 Hank Aaron Award in the American and National Leagues, respectively.

The Hank Aaron Award is given annually to the best hitter in each league and is voted on by MLB fans and media members.

Judge set the AL record for home runs in a single season this past year at 62, surpassing Yankees icon Roger Maris. The 30-year-old, now a free agent, beat out seven Hank Aaron Award nominees, including Yordan Alvarez, Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout, Rafael Devers, Jose Altuve, Jose Ramirez, and Julio Rodriguez.

Judge, a four-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger, is also a finalist for AL MVP alongside Ohtani and Alvarez.

The 35-year-old Goldschmidt, who led the NL with a .981 OPS, beat out teammate Nolan Arenado, as well as Pete Alonso, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Manny Machado, Austin Riley, and Kyle Schwarber.

Now a two-time recipient, Goldschmidt is one of four players to ever win the Hank Aaron Award with two different teams, joining Bryce Harper, Alex Rodriguez, and Manny Ramirez. He also earned the honor in 2013 while a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Goldschmidt is also an MVP finalist in the Senior Circuit. The seven-time All-Star is vying for his first nod against Arenado and Machado. Goldschmidt has previously finished runner-up for MVP twice.