Could Each League Have a Triple Crown Winner in 2024?

While Major League Baseball individual accolades are dominated by the likes of MVP Awards and Cy Youngs, one of the rarest of personal feats could be in play this year: the Triple Crown.

Not only is it possible someone will take home a Triple Crown in 2024, but it could happen in both leagues at the plate and on the mound.

There have been 18 batting Triple Crown winners since Paul Hines achieved the feat for the first time in MLB history in 1878. The last offensive Triple Crown went to Miguel Cabrera in 2012, the first winner since 1967.

When it comes to reaching the heights of the pitching Triple Crown, it’s happened a bit more frequently than its offensive counterpart. There have been 38 pitching Triple Crown winners since Tommy Bond first achieved it in 1877.

The last time this happened was in the COVID-shortened 2020 season by Shane Bieber. The last time it was accomplished in a full season was in 2011 when both Clayton Kershaw and Justin Verlander took home a Triple Crown.

The most Triple Crowns that have been achieved in the same season is two, which has happened seven times in history but only twice in the last 60 years.

So, four different players winning the Triple Crown in both leagues on both sides of the ball would be unheard of.

The question now is, could there really be four Triple Crown winners in 2024?

All statistics used in this article were taken prior to games on August 26.

The Pitching Triple Crown

Between hitting and pitching, the Triple Crown seems the most attainable in both the American League and the National League on the pitching side of things this year.

Tarik Skubal Is on the Verge of the AL Pitching Triple Crown

Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal is in the midst of a Cy Young-caliber season. And the Triple Crown is well within reach, as he’s currently in the driver’s seat of all three statistical categories.

Skubal not only leads the American League in ERA but all of Major League Baseball with a 2.58 ERA. He currently has a firm grasp on the AL ERA title with his closest competition being Houston’s Ronel Blanco at 3.14.

Skubal also finds himself atop the American League leaderboard in strikeouts with 193, ten ahead of Kansas City’s Cole Ragans and 13 ahead of White Sox ace Garrett Crochet.

And Skubal is also in sole possession of the AL lead in wins, with Lugo and Yankees starter Carlos Rodón sitting one win behind at 14 each.

Now, looking forward at what’s left for Skubal and the Tigers, the postseason seems out of reach as the Tigers sit 7.5 games out of a Wild Card spot. So, there’s not a real high level of intensity and meaningfulness that the other teams with pitchers looking to play spoiler to Skubal might have.

The Royals, who look poised to be playing meaningful baseball down the stretch in September, are a team with multiple pitchers looking to rain on Skubal’s parade – Lugo in wins and Ragans in strikeouts.

The Astros (Blanco) and the Yankees (Rodón) are in the same boat as the Royals competitively speaking, as Houston looks to lock up the AL West, while New York continues to battle it out with Baltimore for the AL East division title.

But what the Tigers have to their advantage is the fact they possess one of the easiest remaining schedules in MLB, the third easiest to be exact (per Tankathon). The Royals have the third toughest remaining schedule, the Astros the ninth, and the Yankees the 17th, noticeably more challenging slates than what lies ahead for Detroit.

And while Crochet still could play spoiler in the strikeout department, Chicago is already mathematically out of postseason contention.

So, given the value that Crochet has garnered on the trade market, it’s not out of the realm of possibility to think the White Sox may look to protect their young asset and limit his innings down the stretch. That would certainly impact his ability to keep raking in the strikeouts at his current pace.

Taking all of these factors into account, Skubal looks to be in a good spot to make a run for the AL’s Triple Crown honors on the mound.

Could Chris Sale Take Home the NL Pitching Triple Crown?

The Chris Sale redemption tour in 2024 has been a remarkable watch, as the Atlanta Braves southpaw has returned to the ace form he once had with the White Sox and in his early Red Sox days.

Sale currently sits first in the NL in ERA, sporting a clip of 2.62 so far this season. His closest competition is Philadelphia Phillies ace Zack Wheeler with a 2.73 ERA and Reds All-Star starter Hunter Greene, who has an ERA of 2.83.

Sale also firmly leads the NL in wins, with the next closest National League pitcher sitting two wins behind him.

Where Sale differs from his AL Triple Crown counterpart, Skubal, is that he doesn’t currently hold a lead or a share of the lead in all three categories.

Sale falls short of the NL and MLB strikeout leader Dylan Cease, as his 193 strikeouts have bested the Braves veteran’s total of 191 to this point.

When it comes to competition, Cease represents the biggest threat to Sale’s Triple Crown bid.

Both the Braves and the Padres are in a very competitive NL postseason race. But the Padres do have the edge when it comes to the difficulty of their remaining schedule.

San Diego has a considerably easier schedule than Atlanta moving forward, ranking in the lower third of MLB teams with just the 22nd toughest slate ahead. The Braves, on the other hand, sit within the top half in strength of schedule at 15th.

Sale’s toughest competition in ERA, Wheeler, will also benefit from the Phillies having a slightly easier schedule moving forward, as their remaining opponents have a combined average winning percentage of .496, placing them 18th, three spots ahead of Atlanta’s .502 (15th).

While Sale has some tough competition in Cease and Wheeler, he does have an edge over Greene, who is currently on the IL with elbow inflammation.

Greene is on a Reds team that has faded out of postseason contention and also has the sixth most difficult schedule in the final weeks of the regular season, which does not bode particularly well for a pitcher looking to take home an ERA title.

While two strikeouts and a slightly more difficult schedule are what currently stand in the way of Sale being in pole position for a Triple Crown run, it’s certainly attainable.

This a pitcher with a track record of elite swing and miss capabilities on a Braves team that is desperate and motivated to perform well in order to clinch their seventh consecutive postseason berth.

The Hitting Triple Crown

While hitting Triple Crowns are far more rare, and thus have more fanfare surrounding them, the likelihood of a hitting Triple Crown occurring in 2024, while certainly possible, is not as high as that of the equivalent pitching honor.

Could Aaron Judge Add Triple Crown to His Resume in 2024?

Aaron Judge looks poised to add his second AL MVP to his trophy case this season.

He is currently in firm control of the AL’s home run race, as his 51 round-trippers sit 13 above the American League’s second highest total, which belongs to Baltimore’s Anthony Santander (38).

With so many home runs, it shouldn’t come as a shock that Judge is also leading the AL RBI race by a considerable margin. His 122 RBI sit 19 ahead of Cleveland Guardians superstar third baseman José Ramírez.

Where Judge could fall short in his Triple Crown pursuit in 2024 is in batting average. His .333 average is well behind Royals star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr.’s .347 clip.

With Witt being Judge’s main obstacle standing in the way of his Triple Crown efforts, it’s important to note the major differences in strength of schedule. As we’ve already established, Kansas City has the third hardest schedule in MLB, and the Yankees, on the other hand, have the 17th hardest schedule remaining.

This is certainly an asset to Judge, as neither player has the edge over the other when it comes to playing meaningful baseball down the stretch. Both the Royals and the Yankees are locked into a tight AL Wild Card race, as well as their own respective pursuits of a division title.

A point that’s been floated around is that Witt has noticeably weaker road splits. But in all actuality, his .299 road average may not be enough to drop him below Judge for the AL batting title, especially with how impressively strong he hits within the confines of Kauffmann Stadium.

So, with that being said, it’s not out of the question that Judge could do superstar things and overtake Witt for the batting title to complete the AL Triple Crown. However, he certainly has his work cut out for him in the final weeks of the season.

Shohei Ohtani and Marcell Ozuna Go Head-To-Head for the NL Hitting Triple Crown

While the other three Triple Crown races feature one name that could have his Triple Crown pursuit spoiled by various other names in particular categories, the NL hitting Triple Crown features a pair of DHs that could thwart each other’s chances of earning the accolade.

Shohei Ohtani and Marcell Ozuna are in a tightly contested race for the Triple Crown.

Ohtani has the advantage over Ozuna in home runs. His 41 homers lead the NL and sit four above Ozuna’s 37.

As it stands, both are tied for the top spot in the NL in RBI with 94, after Ohtani’s big weekend series against the Tampa Bay Rays helped him make up the required ground on his positional counterpart in Atlanta.

Ozuna, though, has the edge over Ohtani when it batting average, arguably the most difficult of the three Triple Crown statistics to claim. His .305 average leads all NL hitters right now, whereas Ohtani’s .292 AVG sits all the way down in sixth.

Ozuna’s main competition here comes in the form of one of baseball’s best hitters for average in recent years: Luis Arráez, who sits just two points behind him. And as we established when looking at one of Chris Sale’s potential Triple Crown spoilers in Dylan Cease, the Padres do have an edge over the Braves in terms of their strength of remaining schedule:

But, if we just look at the race between Ohtani and Ozuna, the Braves’ No. 15 ranking in strength of schedule sits a bit harder than the Dodgers’ No. 23 ranking, giving Ohtani a bit of a chance to catch up in the average department and pull away in RBI. Both teams are in competitive postseason races, and neither player may see a ton of extra rest as the postseason nears.

Ohtani also has the personal motivation to further pull ahead in home runs, as he looks to be the first hitter in MLB history to join the 50 HR/50 SB club, spelling an even more difficult road for Ozuna to make up ground in the NL home run race.

It truly is a toss-up as to whether either of these players will take home the NL hitting Triple Crown. Ohtani’s lead in home runs may be insurmountable, and Ozuna’s average may be too much for Ohtani to make up with limited games left in the regular season.

So, Who Has the Best Shot at a Triple Crown?

While all four Triple Crown races have a reasonable chance of producing successful outcomes, a few stand out as the more likely to occur.

The fact that Tarik Skubal is the only Triple Crown hopeful in sole possession of first place in each of the required statistical categories this late in the season makes him the best candidate to achieve it.

Chris Sale is certainly the next closest to achieving this, being just two strikeouts away from leading each required metric. And considering the Braves, as it stands right now, are in a more desperate hunt for a postseason birth than the Padres or the Phillies, this bodes well for Sale.

He is less likely to receive any sort of rest ahead of the playoffs, as teams like San Diego and Philadelphia may look to alter their rotations late in September to ensure their aces are rested and lined up for an early start in whatever postseason series they participate in.

The hitting Triple Crowns, while still in play, seem less likely to happen.

Judge seems a bit too far behind a very strong hitter in Witt this late in the season for the AL batting title.

And Ozuna’s lead in batting average seems a bit too far out of reach for Ohtani at this late stage in the season, and likewise when it comes to Ohtani’s lead in home runs for Ozuna to catch up to.

But one thing is for sure, the fact that all four Triple Crown races are very much alive this late in the season will make for another exciting storyline to watch as the 2024 regular season winds down.