Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh has been named Baseball Digest/Inside Edge’s major league player of the year, edging New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge in a close vote.
Raleigh, a switch-hitter who became just the seventh player in history to hit 60 home runs in a season, earned 12 of 24 first-place votes from a panel of baseball writers, broadcasters, and former players, managers, and executives. He finished with 56 points.
Judge received eight first-place votes and 53 points, while Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani picked up the remaining four first-place votes and came in third.
Raleigh, 27, had a season that not only powered the Mariners to the AL West title but also rewrote parts of baseball history.
He led the majors in home runs, drove in 125 runs to lead the American League, and posted a .247 batting average with a .948 OPS.
Raleigh’s 60 home runs set single-season records for both catchers and switch-hitters and broke the Mariners’ franchise record previously held by Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr.
The honor makes Raleigh only the second Mariners player to win the Baseball Digest award, joining Alex Rodriguez, who received it in 1996.
Judge, who won the award last year by narrowly beating Ohtani, led the majors in batting average (.331) and OPS (1.144). He finished with 53 home runs, 114 RBIs, and ranked second in runs scored (137).
The award announcements also included Pittsburgh Pirates rookie Paul Skenes, who was voted pitcher of the year, and Boston Red Sox closer Aroldis Chapman, who was named reliever of the year.
Skenes won by a wide margin over Detroit Tigers left-hander Tarik Skubal.
With the Baseball Digest honor decided, attention now turns to next month’s AL MVP vote, where Raleigh and Judge are expected to finish first and second, though the order remains uncertain.
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