Aaron Judge is the leading candidate for the AL MVP watch 2022 and he is powering the New York Yankees atop the MLB standings and towards the MLB playoffs. While Judge is focused on the season and his arbitration battle with New York, many around the league are thinking about his future.

New York had an opportunity to sign Judge to a long-term contract this spring. While the Yankees made a sizable offer, it fell short of the salaries for the highest paid MLB players. Ultimately, Judge rejected it and went into his contract year looking to prove himself.

That’s precisely what the 30-year-old outfielder is doing. He entered Wednesday as the favorite for MVP honors, led MLB in All-Star Game votes and is enjoying one of the best seasons by a contract-year player in recent memory.

Aaron Judge stats (2022): .300/.378/.644, 25 home runs, 50 RBI, 3.8 FanGraphs WAR, 184 wRC+

Judge is staying healthy, all while playing quality defense in center field. Once his arbitration case is settled, determining his salary at either $17 million or $21 million, he can focus entirely on baseball. While he isn’t focused on free agency this winter, multiple MLB executives weighed in on what might happen.