In recent weeks, New York Yankees first baseman Luke Voit has placed himself in MVP discussions. Not only is Voit currently playing lights out, he is arguably one of the best players in MLB. Here, is an inside look at the numbers and make a case for Luke Voit for MVP
Acquisition
On July 28th 2018, the Yankees acquired Luke Voit and international bonus money from the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for Chasen Shreve and Giovanny Gallegos. At the time, Voit had only appeared in eight games for the Cardinals that season batting .182 with three RBI. Voit was seen as a successful Triple-A player, but he hadn’t been able to solidify a spot on the Cardinals MLB roster. For the Yankees, Greg Bird was still seen as the first baseman of the future and Voit was simply going to be bench depth long term and only play sparingly. However, Voit would go on a tear in 2018 appearing in 39 games for the Bombers batting .333 with 14 home runs and 33 RBI. Bird was ultimately released as Voit earned a full-time job as the Yankees first baseman.
The Numbers
The New York Yankees are coming off of a bad losing streak. From August 18th through September 11th, they went 8-15 and currently sit in third place in the AL East. However, in that same span, Voit is batting .284 with nine home runs and ten RBI. The fact that he only has ten RBI despite hitting nine home runs shows that there aren’t too many players getting on base in front of him. He currently leads all Yankees hitters with 16 home runs, 36 RBI and 33.85 Runs Created.
Voit has solidified himself as the best power hitter on the Yankees, picking up the slack of the injured Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. Voit’s .285 batting average trails only regular starter DJ LeMahieu for second best on the team. Judge and Stanton both have higher batting averages than Voit, but Stanton hasn’t played since August 8th and Judge has only played one game since August 11th. So, it is safe to say that Voit’s consistency is keeping the Yankees afloat.
Luke Voit vs. MLB
Not only do Voit’s numbers place him amongst the Yankees best, they also show his value against the rest of the MLB as well. When comparing him to all other first basemen, Voit’s .285 batting average ranks fifth overall. Also, his .629 slugging ranks first, his .982 OPS ranks second, and his 36 RBI is tied for third most. As a result of the stats, it is easy to say that Voit is one the best overall first baseman in all of baseball.
When comparing Voit to perennial MVP candidate Mike Trout, the numbers are very close. In 155 at-bats, Trout is batting .303 with 47 hits, 16 home runs, 39 RBI and 44 strikeouts. For Voit, in 151 at-bats, he is hitting .285 with 43 hits, 16 home runs, 36 RBI and 41 strikeouts. In fact, Voit and Trout are tied for the MLB lead in home runs and Trout has 18 more plate appearances than Voit.
So, when comparing to Voit to arguably the best player in baseball, Voit’s value holds up.
Conclusion
Numbers don’t lie and Voit owns the numbers to back up his worth. In this shortened season, Voit is carving himself a path as a name to remember when discussing best MLB players. Other players such as Shane Bieber, Mike Trout, and Brandon Lowe might be mentioned more often. However, when the MVP voting comes around, voters would be wise to consider giving a vote to Luke Voit. He has earned it.
* All stats listed are accurate as of 9/12/2020
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
