"Ohtani is stat padding" "It's easily Judge" - MLB fans pick their "Player of the Year" amid Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani's historic seasons

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani and New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge are arguably the two most talked about MLB players this season. It is not only due to their MVP-caliber seasons but also because of historic numbers.

While Ohtani is leading the race for the NL MVP title, Judge is the frontrunner for the AL MVP crown. However, who would be the MLB's "Player of the Year" if such a title existed?

MLB network's Lauren Shehadi and Tom Verducci debated the title, with Verducci leaning towards the Yankees captain while Shehadi not being able to separate the two remarkable hitters.

However, fans found Aaron Judge to be the clear favorite as he leads Shohei Ohtani in several offensive stats, including most home runs and OPS+.

"It's easily Judge. Are we serious? Judge beats out Ohtani in most major offensive statistics while playing one of the most demanding positions in baseball. No contest," a fan highlighted Judge's defensive attributes as an outfielder apart from his hitting.

"Judge. Ohtani is having a historic year at the plate (slightly better than Judge); however, Judge doubles depth being a solid outfielder for the Yankees," another fan concurred.

A fan seemingly held a harsh opinion of Shohei Ohtani's season, calling him out for stat padding steals as a DH this season.

"They are trying to make it seem close for television purposes. It's not close at all. Judge might be having the greatest season of any player in the history of the sport. Ohtani is stat padding stolen bases which is the most overrated stat in all of baseball plus he is a DH."

Other fans continued to show their support for Judge in the "Player of the Year" debate.

"It shouldn’t be a conversation. 50/50 is insanely cool but, when Judge leads in literally everything except stolen bases you can’t say Ohtani’s had a better season," another fan wrote.

"Judge has a better offensive season and plays defense. Ohtani is a one way player. Why is this a discussion? JUDGE!!!" wrote another fan.

Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani continue breaking records

While the Yankees rested Aaron Judge for Friday's series opener against the Pittsburg Pirates after his MLB-leading 58th home run of the season in the previous game to clinch the AL East title, Shohei Ohtani joined an elusive club against the Colorado Rockies.

Ohtani stole his 57th base this season, passing MLB legend Ichiro Suzuki to become the Japanese-born player with the most steals in a season. He also belted a three-run homer on the night to take his tally to 54 home runs this season.