Ex-MLB star claims Aaron Judge, Bobby Witt Jr. will use postseason failures as fuel for next season

New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge and Kansas City Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. were at the heart of their team's qualification to the postseason with remarkable performances during the regular season.

Both Judge and Witt Jr. helped their team to seal a postseason berth in 2024 and were among the three finalists for the American League MVP award, won by the Yankees captain for a second time in his MLB career.

While the duo led the team during the regular season, it was an underwhelming show in October. Bobby Witt Jr. failed to lead his team past the Yankees in the ALDS, bowing out after four games. Meanwhile, Aaron Judge's renowned postseason slump continued as the Bronx Bombers were defeated by the Los Angeles Dodgers for the World Series title.

Former World Series winner Eric Hosmer talked about the mental fortitude of Judge and Witt Jr. in the latest episode of "Nothing Personal with David Samson."

"I mean, Bobby and Aaron Judge two guys, you just brought up right there," Hosmer said (11:10 onwards). "If you look at their seasons, put their regular seasons, I mean, up against any regular season, the last couple of years, these guys are MVPs year in and year out MVP candidates, and they did unbelievably.

"Then you get to the postseason, which is such a short amount of games, whether you get knocked out early, or whether you go to the World Series like Judge, and they don't perform the way they want to and that weighs on them. And that's crazy. I mean, you look at it, he can go out next year, in New York and have 60-65 home runs and it's still going to be that first day of the playoffs."

Hosmer believes both Judge and Witt Jr. will find a way to move past the setbacks, saying:

"The conversation is going to be the same no matter what. So I think it is a tremendous amount of pressure but I think these guys find ways to bottle it up and use that for fuel to go and get better. I know Bobby Witt Jr., especially after last postseason against the Yankees.

"He did not perform the way he wanted to, but it almost seemed like after talking to him, he was ready to go. This year you can almost book he's going to have another MVP-type season, but when the postseason starts, it's like, it's going to be a brand new season for them, and I'm ready for him to go."

Aaron Judge and Bobby Witt Jr. cap 2024 with personal accolades

Although the Yankees fell short against the Dodgers in the Fall Classic, captain Aaron Judge was named the AL MVP unanimously, beating Bobby Witt Jr. in second place and his former Yankees teammate Juan Soto. He also won the prestigious Hank Aaron Award for the second time in his career.

Bobby Witt Jr. signed a franchise record $288.7 million contract extension in February 2024 and repaid the faith of the front office by becoming the first player since Alfonso Soriano to have back-to-back 30-30 seasons. While he finished second in MVP voting, Witt Jr. earned his first Silver Slugger and Gold Glove awards.