NEW YORK -- Aaron Judge captured a slice of history this past season, setting the American League’s single-season home run record while taking his pursuit of a Triple Crown into the season’s final week. It was a remarkable performance, and now the slugging superstar waits to learn if it has earned him hardware.

Judge was announced Monday as a finalist for the AL’s Most Valuable Player Award, along with the Astros’ Yordan Alvarez and the Angels’ Shohei Ohtani.

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No Yankees outfielder has won an MVP award since Mickey Mantle in 1962. Judge was previously the runner-up for AL MVP in 2017, when he was selected as the AL’s unanimous Rookie of the Year.

Currently a free agent, Judge turned down a contract extension on Opening Day and delivered a walk season for the ages, batting .311/.425/.686 in 157 games.

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The 30-year-old, who has played his entire career to date in Yankees pinstripes, led the Majors in homers (62), runs (133), RBIs (131), slugging percentage, on-base percentage, OPS+ (211) and total bases (391).

Judge’s chase to shatter Roger Maris’ 61-year-old AL record for home runs in a single season captivated the sports world for weeks, culminating with a 62nd home run in the second game of an Oct. 4 doubleheader at Texas.

Though most of his big hits at Yankee Stadium were accompanied by chants of “M-V-P!”, Judge downplayed them in his aw-shucks style, remarking on more than one occasion that it was “just noise.”

He is the fourth Major Leaguer to hit 62 or more homers in a single season, joining Barry Bonds (73 in 2001), Mark McGwire (70 in 1998 and 65 in 1999) and Sammy Sosa (66 in 1998, 64 in 2001 and 63 in 1999). He finished five batting points shy of the Twins’ Luis Arraez (.316) for a Triple Crown.

Judge was the first player to lead the Majors (outright or tied) in homers, runs scored, extra-base hits and RBIs since Mickey Mantle in 1956, according to ESPN Stats & Info. Judge’s 1.111 OPS was the highest by a Yankee since Mantle in 1961 (1.135). He led the Majors in homers by 16, the largest gap since the Athletics’ Jimmie Foxx led the Majors by 17 homers in 1932.

Heading into what promises to be a lucrative journey through free agency, the performance helped Judge quiet critics who wondered about his durability. Injuries limited Judge to 242 of a possible 384 games from 2018-20 (63%) before he played in 148 and 157 games over the next two seasons.

His 11.99 AB/HR ratio is the third-best in Major League history, behind only McGwire (10.61) and Babe Ruth (11.76). A four-time AL All-Star (’17, ’18, ’21 and ’22), Judge won Silver Slugger Awards in 2017 and ’21, receiving MVP votes in ’17, ’18 and ’21.