On the surface, it seems like theres hardly anything that separates Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani this year. The megastars are ma sive favorites to win the American League and National League MVP awards, respectively. Judge led MLB in the regular season with 58 homers, 144 RBIs, a .458 on-base percentage, a .701 slugging percentage and a 1.159 OPS. Aaron Judge Jason Szenes / New York Post Ohtani was second in all categories with 54 homers, 130 RBIs, a .390 on-base percentage, a .646 slugging percentage and a 1.036 OPS. Their contracts a nine-year, $360 million deal for Judge and a 10-year, $700 million deal for Ohtani rank fourth and first in MLB in total value. Explore More Theyre separated by just two years Judge is 32, while Ohtani is 30. Ohtanis rare double ability as an elite pitcher as well as a hitter would be a natural point of difference, but he hasnt pitched this year after undergoing Tommy John surgery in September 2023. For the time being, thats a moot point. So, where do they differ? Shohei Ohtani Corey Sipkin for the NY POST The most obvious is in their baserunning. Ohtanis speed is a real weapon, recording 59 stolen bases in the regular season to Judges 10. Ohtani became the first player to hit at least 50 homers and steal at least 50 bases in a season. Now, how do they compare beyond the surface in more advanced stats? Lets start with the regular season first. Plate discipline Judge swung at 17.7 percent of pitches outside the strike zone, according to FanGraphs. Ohtani was far le s disciplined, swinging at 26.0 percent of pitches outside the zone. That matches Judges more patient approach he swung at 42 percent of total pitches he saw, while Ohtani was at 47.3 percent. Plate tendencies Ohtanis lefty-righty splits are much more stark than Judges. Ohtani, a lefty, had a 1.128 OPS facing righties versus a .867 OPS against lefties. Judge, a righty, had a 1.132 OPS facing righties compared to a 1.240 OPS against lefties. Ohtani is much more of a pull hitter. He pulled 48 percent of his batted balls, while Judge pulled 35 percent of his. Judge utilizes center field much more, hitting 50 Yasmani Grandal Jersey percent of his batted balls there compared to Ohtanis 36 percent. Neither struggled against any one pitch. Of pitches Judge saw at least 60 times, his lowest OPS was .861, on curveballs. He had a .998 OPS or higher against all other pitches. He was best against speed, owning a 1.247 and 1.272 OPS against fastballs and sinkers, respectively. Ohtanis lowest OPS against pitches he saw at least 60 times was an .832 mark against cutters. His OPS was .944 or higher against all other pitches. Ohtani sees far more first-pitch strikes, at 60.2 percent, than Judge does at 51.8 percent. Batted balls Ohtani hits far more ground balls 40.0 percent of his batted balls, compared to Judges 30.0 percent. They hit fly balls at similar rates Judge at 55 percent, Ohtani at 52 percent but Judge hits significantly more line drives at 15.0 percent compared to Ohtanis 8.0 percent. They both hit the ball extremely hard Judge had a 45.0 percent hard-hit percentage on batted balls, while Ohtani was at 44.0. But Judge made better contact more consistently, hitting 26.9 percent of batted balls on the barrel compared to Ohtanis 21.4 percent. That is probably why Judge has a slightly higher average exit velocity at 96.2 miles per hour compared to Ohtanis 95.8 mph. Judge has a higher average launch angle as well, at 18.9 degrees compared to Ohtanis 16.2 degrees. Environment/pre sure Both were slightly better at home. Judge had a 1.218 OPS at Yankee Stadium compared to a 1.106 OPS mark on the road, while Ohtani was at 1.091 at Dodger Stadium and .985 on the road. Judge was better with runners in scoring position with a 1.219 OPS compared to Ohtanis .905 mark. Go beyond the box score with the Bombers Sign up for Inside the Yankees by Greg Joyce, exclusively on Sports+. Thank you By clicking above you agree to the and . Enjoy this Post Sports+ exclusive newsletter! Judge thrived the most early in games with a 1.288 OPS in the first three innings, 1.061 in the middle three innings and 1.041 in the last three innings. Ohtani was at his worst early in games, with a .972 OPS in the first three innings, 1.128 in the middle three and 1.053 in the final three. Playoffs Now, lets zoom in on how each has fared this postseason entering the World Series. Judge has a .161/.317/.387 slash line with a .704 OPS, two homers and 6 RBIs. Ohtani has a .286/.434/.500 slash line with a .934 OPS, three homers and 10 RBIs. Clearly, Ohtani enters the hotter hitter. Will that end up being the biggest difference? Or will something else emerge as an X factor? Billy Mckinney Jersey