Judge vs. Stanton: who has more power?
Aaron Judge. Giancarlo Stanton. Both are known for their imposing stature and power. But if we look at the stats, whose power is truly more impressive? Judge stands at 6’7” and 282 pounds; Stanton is listed at 6’6” and 245. We will be looking at the last two years: 2017, which was Judge’s record-setting rookie year and Stanton’s MVP year, and 2018. One important aspect that goes into power is launch angle. Another is exit velocity. It is the combination of the two that truly encapsulated power. The “sweet spot” for a batted ball is loosely defined as having a launch angle between 25 and 35 degrees and an exit velocity of 95 miles per hour or greater. (*BBE = batted ball event)
Player
Avg. Launch Angle Avg. Exit Velocity % of BBE 95 MPH+ Barrels/BBE % Barrels/PA % Avg. Distance (ft.)
Judge
14.2
94.8
54.6
21.5
11.1
201
Stanton 11.3 92.8 48.1 16.3 9.9
179
Judging (no pun intended) by the stats above, it appears as if Judge has been the more “powerful” hitter over the last two seasons. He has a leg up across the board.
Aaron Judge
Giancarlo Stanton The above field views show batted balls that had about the same launch angle and exit velocity as Judge and Stanton’s averages. While the two are almost equivalent, it appears as if Judge’s average launch angle and exit velocity have resulted in balls hit in the infield. Judge has the slight advantage here in batting average and doubles percentage, whereas Stanton has the advantage in singles percentage and triples percentage. None of the balls hit with these average launch angles and exit velocities in 2018 resulted in a home run.
Based on the graphs above, Judge had an exit velocity between 110 and 115 MPH more often than Stanton, but Stanton had a slight edge above that. In terms of launch angle, physics tells us that 45 degrees in the optimal angle. However, as aforementioned, the “sweet spot” is generally deemed to be 25-35 degrees. Between 25 and 30, Stanton had the slim edge, while Judge has a larger lead in balls hit between 30 and 35 degrees. Overall, it seems harder to draw conclusions from this chart. But speaking of the “sweet spot”: Judge has averaged about 37.1 percent of his batted balls being off the sweet spot of the bat; Stanton is at 30.8 percent.
Conclusion
Over the past two seasons, it seems as if Judge holds the advantage in power (or at least based on the components that comprise it). However, both players will perennially be in the talk for having the most power in the entire league for years to come. For now, we can only hope that a healthy Judge and a more comfortable Stanton will lead to a lot of balls flying out of Yankee Stadium as well as parks around the league.