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New York Yankees’ slugger and reigning American League MVP Aaron Judge is back on the cover of MLB The Show this year, and I’m happy for him, but it’s not the accolade he needs most.
Judge was announced as the cover star for MLB The Show 26 this morning, marking the second time he’s earned the honor after MLB The Show 18. That year, Judge was coming off of a monster rookie season. Eight years later, he’s added three MVP awards (it should’ve been four) and a massive contract.
Image via PlayStationBut one thing is still missing from Judge’s achievement shelf. And it’s the biggest one of all: a World Series trophy. Yes, I’m a Yankees fan, and I have been my whole life. Judge is easily one of the two best players in the world right now (Shohei Ohtani is the other), but his lack of a ring is starting to grate on me.
It’s not all on Judge. Of course it isn’t. It takes 26 players to win a championship and countless more in the organization to enable that to happen. But his performance in the playoffs is notably worse than his regular season stats (.236 batting average to go with 17 home runs in 65 games), and it’s a black mark on his record thus far.
Judge is an excellent choice for the cover star. He’s one of the faces of the game, and he’s earned it with his three MVP awards and excellent statline. He’s averaged a staggering 1.028 OPS and 52 home runs over the first 10 years of his career. Before he’s finished, he may well end up pushing 500 career home runs.
But he needs the ring. Especially as a Yankee. The Yanks haven’t won a World Series since 2009. This is the second-longest drought in the franchise’s history, and if they don’t win this year, it will tie the record (first set between 1979 and 1995, some of the darkest days in the team’s history).
As for this year’s game, the devs won’t be teasing much until Feb. 3 when a gameplay trailer will be released. After that, we should learn more about Franchise mode, Road to the Show, Diamond Dynasty, and all the others that players expect out of the baseball sim.
For Judge to go down as an all-time great Yankee, he needs the ring. Being on the cover of MLB The Show 26 doesn’t help him get that, and I don’t think him playing as team captain for the United States in this year’s World Baseball Classic will either. But I hope I’m wrong.
MLB The Show 26 launches on March 17 (with early access beginning four days prior) on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch. The Yankees’ season begins 11 days later in San Francisco against the Giants, and I’m hoping it’ll be the start of something big, lest Judge’s starpower will genuinely begin to lose some luster in the eyes of many.
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