The Yankees are rolling into 2026 with basically the same team they had last year. As long as Aaron Judge is in the lineup, though, they’ve got a real shot at making noise.
Judge has been one of baseball’s elite players for years now, and ESPN just ranked him as the second-best player heading into the 2026 season. Only Shohei Ohtani sits ahead of him.
But here’s where it gets interesting. ESPN’s Jorge Castillo thinks Judge is going to do something he’s never done before this season – steal 20 bases while winning his fourth MVP award.
“Judge slugs 55 home runs, becoming the first player to recover five career 50-homer seasons. He adds a career high 20 steals and wins his fourth American League MVP in five years.”
The home run prediction? That’s not exactly going out on a limb. Judge has cleared 50 homers four times already, including that monster 62-homer season in 2022 and 58 last year.
The stolen base prediction, though? That’s bold.
Judge has swiped just 65 total bases across his entire 10-year career. We’re talking about a guy who averages fewer than seven steals per season. His career-high is 16, which came during that historic 2022 campaign.
So hitting 20 would mean Judge suddenly becomes more aggressive on the basepaths than he’s ever been. At 34, that’s not typically when players start running more.
What makes this prediction even more intriguing is the context. If Judge does manage to swipe 20 bags while launching 55 homers, he’d join some pretty exclusive company. That kind of power-speed combination from a player his size – he’s 6’7″ and 282 pounds – would be something special.
The MVP part seems realistic enough. Judge has already won two AL MVP awards and finished in the top five voting three other times. He’s been the Yankees’ engine for years now.
From where I’m sitting, the home runs are almost a given if Judge stays healthy. The steals? That’s the wild card that would make this season truly memorable for the Yankees captain.
