This means that each player won the award for the second time. Ohtani won this award in the AL last season with the Los Angeles Angels, while Judge received this award in 2022 by breaking the AL home run record.

Both players had outstanding years and eventually finished their seasons in the World Series; Ohtani and the Dodgers came out on top by winning their first championship.

Ohtani hit 54 home runs, 130 RBI, 38 doubles and 7 triples in his first season with the Dodgers. He set career highs in homers, RBIs and doubles while also posting a career-best .310 batting average. His 1.036 OPS was the second-best in the majors, behind only Judge.

But Ohtani was more than just power this year and showed off his speed as well. He stole 59 bases, besting his previous career high of 26. He became the first player in MLB history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a single season.

The referee was on the field as usual in 2024. He blasted 58 homers, 144 RBIs, 36 doubles and a triple. He had the best OPS in the majors at 1.159 while posting the third-best batting average at .322.