Who will be Baseball’s MVP?

Okay, the season still has another month, but really, should we not already have a good hunch as to who will win the MVP for each of the American and National Leagues of Major League Baseball?

There are two schools of thought here, which will determine the winner. If you are really looking at the most valuable player it should be awarded to the player that without whom the team is most severely affected. Agree? Let’s take team A who are hovering around .500 and call them, oh I don’t know, the Blue Jays. They just happen to have a guy by the name of Jose who has batting average of .309. He leads the majors in walks (108), home runs (39), slugging % (.640… no one is even close) and on base % (.449%). I suppose Granderson has some categories where he surpasses Jose, but not on many. What hurts Jose, though it shouldn’t because baseball is a TEAM sport, is that the Jays are not making the postseason, whereas Granderson’s Yankess most certainly are.

There is also a very strong case for Justin Verlander, rightfully so, with 20 wins, and a league leading WHIP (.90) and strikeouts (218). It’s hard to argue those numbers. Verlander is spectacular, no question.

I guess my question is: Should the player’s team making the postseason or not be an important factor in determining the most valuable player? I think not.

In the end, I think it goes to either Granderson or Verlander, but I think Jose has every right to have his name mentioned quite seriously judging solely on what he has meant to the Blue Jays.

4 Comments

1. 

   Phantom

   September 2, 2011 at 6:10 pm

   Woah, hold on a minute here. How do you build a short list of AL MVP candidates without including the best player, on the best team, in the American League?!? I don’t mind the nod in Bautista’s direction, but you at least have to tip your cap to the Leagues reining leader in total hits and overall batting average.

   Yes, Adrian Gonzalez does have a great supporting cast playing in Boston, but that has little to no impact on the fact that he hits the ball more often than any other player in the league. You mentioned home runs and slugging percentage, which are great stats to track, I mean who doesn’t love a power hitter. And Gonzo does lack the stats in those respective departments. But he does have power to hit the ball just as hard and just as far as his fellow AL sluggers (See: 2011 Home Run Derby). But at the end of the day, if I have to send one guy to the plate in a clutch situation, I’m sending the guy with the highest percentage chance of getting a hit. Also, on the other side of the plate, Gonzalez is a two-time Gold Glove winner, and is right in the hunt to win his third. While his counterparts (Granderson and Bautista) are well behind in their respective positions. Finally, the Bo Sox are a great team, but without Adrian I garuantee they would not be sitting in first place in the AL ahead of the powerhouse Yankees.

   I’m not saying that if I was selected to vote that I would perforate his chad on the ballot, I’m just saying his name deserves to be there. I think if the voting was between the three mentioned superstars I would lean in Adrians direction (given the reasons above), but I could understand someone else making a case for one of the other two stars, given they are all really close in major stats such as Runs Scored, Runs Batted In, and On Base Percentage. So if it came down to it, and I had to cast my vote, I would definitely look to the defensive side of things and select Justin Verlander. As you had mentioned in your article above, he has been “lights out” this season. Leading the league in the most vital of pitching categories. Not only that, but without his 20 wins, would Detroit be making the post season?

   Reply
   • 

     Mike

     September 2, 2011 at 6:45 pm

     Well put, solid argument. I was more just bringing up whether a player’s chances of winning mvp are related to his team’s success….or rather whether it should be. You mention the golden gloves….well what about bautista being able to shift from rf to 3b? He’s def got the arm to manage that, but also fielding. Where is versatility measured? Pretty valuable, no? No question adrian will be there but the point was more to do with whether voters should consider the success of a player’s team. Great reply!

     Reply
2. 

   B.Kerr

   September 2, 2011 at 11:50 pm

   Batting Average is a good stat…. but I think there are two more valuable.

   On base percentage is more important…. Getting on base is more important than just pure number of hits.

   OPS is most important in my book though, because it shows the combination of being likely to get on base and also the fact that when you do get on base you are not just hitting singles, but hitting the ball hard and for extra bases, which is extremely important and leads to more runs.

   Interestingly enough…. noone is even close to Bautista in both OBP and OPS.

   To me that makes him the most valuable hitter in baseball.

   You add his versatility, and good defence, and I think that gives him the argument for position players.

   Now the only thing left to decide for me would be if Verlander should take the award over him.

   People can say that a Position player goes every day, and a starter only 1x in every five…. but I’m gonna counter that by saying a Starting Pitcher faces more batters in a season than a position player gets plate appearances.

   A position player only gets 4-5 at bats per game in a chance to influence things. A starting pitcher can face anywhere from 20-35 batters over the course of a game, and is thus involved in just as many at bats over the course of a season.

   Reply
   • 

     Mike

     September 3, 2011 at 7:41 am

     Agreed….joey bats best all around hitter and top notch fielder too. Says something when opposing hitters feel he is good enough to walk him more than any player in baseball. Lets take this to the message board…I posted thr question…

     Reply