HOUSTON — Jose Altuve showed his versatility again Friday, sparking the Astros’ only rally of their 2-1 win over the Yankees in Game 1 of the ALCS.

But before the game, the 5-foot-6 second baseman, who led the American League in hits for a fourth straight season, hit for the highest average in the league and made the All-Star team for the fourth year in a row, said if it were up to him, Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge would be the AL MVP.

“Probably him,” Altuve said when asked who he’d pick if he had a vote. “Judge, yeah.”

The second baseman didn’t stop there.

“Maybe in another life, I want to be Aaron Judge and hit all those homers,” Altuve said with a laugh.

The Astros will take this version of Altuve, who had by far the more consistent season.

On Friday, he singled, stole second and then scored the game’s first run on Carlos Correa’s single in the bottom of the fourth to give the Astros the lead. It was the first hit off Masahiro Tanaka and his first of three on the night.

“He showed why he’s an MVP,” Judge said.

Constantly greeted by chants of “MVP” by the crowd at Minute Maid Park, Altuve also made a diving play to his right to rob Didi Gregorius of a hit in the fourth, though he did make an error on Matt Holliday’s slow grounder in the fifth.

Beforehand, Altuve said Judge did enough to get the award, despite being in a slump for much of the second half.

“Because he hit a lot of homers, [had] a lot of RBIs, he got on base a lot, and I like the way he plays,” Altuve said. “If I was a GM, I’d want him on my team because he plays the right way and he’s very humble.”

The MVP won’t be named until after the conclusion of the postseason, but to Houston manager A.J. Hinch, there’s no debate about who had the best season.

“I will always back Jose Altuve,” Hinch said. “I think in this regard, I’ve got to tell him he’s wrong. Jose Altuve’s the MVP. I’m biased, I love Aaron Judge and Jose Ramirez and Mike Trout, and the seasons that those guys had, but Jose was the most consistent player in the big leagues.”

Hinch isn’t incorrect.

Altuve’s lowest OPS in any month was .832 in September.

Judge, on the other hand, fell apart at the plate immediately after the All-Star break.

From July 14 through Aug. 26, Judge went just 25-for-142 with seven homers and 63 strikeouts and had an OPS of .678.

He did, however, set a major-league rookie record with 52 homers, breaking Mark McGwire’s record of 49 set in 1987.

“He hits the ball way farther than anybody in the big leagues, all his homers,’’ Altuve said. “He plays good defense, he did everything to win the MVP in the regular season.’’

Altuve’s admiration of Judge extended beyond the numbers.

“I met him in the All-Star Game and he couldn’t believe he was there,” Altuve said. “He was like, ‘Wow, this is awesome.’ And I was like, ‘Yeah, but I came here to watch you hit, you know, and I’m happy to be with you…’ If he wins the MVP, I think that it couldn’t happen to a better guy, because he works really hard and I like the way he plays.”