DETROIT — Two of baseball’s biggest stars collected MVP hardware on Thursday night, but the voting also revealed some unexpected recognition for two Detroit Tigers.
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge and Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani were unanimous selections for the MVP award in the American and National Leagues, respectively.
Tigers ace lefty Tarik Skubal, fresh off his AL Cy Young award win, finished seventh in the MVP balloting. More surprisingly, left-handed reliever Tyler Holton tied for 15th place with one 10th-place vote.
Holton’s recognition came from a Toronto-based voter, who likely used the 10th spot on his ballot to highlight an unheralded yet deserving player. Holton, one of the league’s steadiest relievers, quietly put together another stellar season for the Tigers in 2024.
Holton went 7-2 with a 2.19 ERA in 94 1/3 innings, striking out 77 and walking 17.
Skubal, who was named on 24 of 30 ballots, was a more conventional selection. He led the league in wins (18), ERA (2.39), and strikeouts (228), becoming the first pitcher to claim all three categories in a full season since Justin Verlander (Tigers) and Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers) did so in 2011.
In the AL, Judge won his second career MVP award. Runner-up Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals received all 30 second-place votes.
Judge, who also won in 2022, is the 17th multi-MVP winner in AL history, joining three-time winners Jimmie Foxx (1932-33, 1938), Joe DiMaggio (1939, 1941, 1947), Yogi Berra (1951, 1954-55), Mickey Mantle (1956-57, 1962), Alex Rodriguez (2003, 2005, 2007) and Mike Trout (2014, 2016, 2019); and two-time winners Hank Greenberg (1935, 1940), Hal Newhouser (1944-45), Ted Williams (1946, 1949), Roger Maris (1960-61), Robin Yount (1982, 1989), Cal Ripken Jr. (1983, 1991), Frank Thomas (1993-94), Juan Gonzalez (1996, 1998), Miguel Cabrera (2012-13) and Ohtani (2021, 2023).
Ohtani won his third MVP award, adding to the two he won in the AL with the Los Angeles Angels. All three of his victories have been by a unanimous vote.
Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor was the runner-up.
Ohtani has finished first or second in four consecutive MVP elections, one year shy of the record shared by Barry Bonds and Trout.
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