Most Valuable Player Award Finalists
In standard tradition, the Baseball Writers Association of America announced the finalists for each of the four major awards on Monday. These awards recognize some of the games best in both the American and National League. This article will focus on the three MVP Award finalists in the NL and AL.
National League MVP Finalists
During the announcement, the following three players were revealed as finalists for the award. Mookie Betts of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Freddie Freeman of the Atlanta Braves, and Manny Machado of the San Diego Padres.
Mookie Betts had another great season. During his first year in a Dodgers uniform, Betts finished the year with a .292/.366/.562 slash line. He helped lead the team to it’s first World Series championship since 1988, as well.
Despite that though, don’t count out either Freddie Freeman or Manny Machado either. Freeman led all of baseball with 51 runs and 23 doubles over 262 plate appearances or 60 games. In addition, Machado finished the season with a .580 slugging percentage. That was his highest percentage in that category since the first-half of the 2015 regular season. Machado was a member of the Baltimore Orioles then.
American League MVP Finalists
Following the announcement regarding the NL, the American League MVP finalists were announced. Jose Abreu of the Chicago White Sox, DJ LeMahieu formally of the New York Yankees, currently a free agent, and Jose Ramirez of the Cleveland Indians made the cut.
Among this field of candidates, identifying a clear-cut favorite isn’t as easy. Jose Abreu once again had a strong season at the plate. He finished the regular season with a .317/.370/.617 slash line over 262 plate appearances in 60 games.
Additionally, DJ LeMahieu had a very good walk year for himself. The 32-year old led all of baseball with a .364 batting average over 216 plate appearances. Furthermore, he led the AL with both a .421 on-base percentage and 1.011 OPS.
Finally, Jose Ramirez started the season slow, but really made a late MVP push. The Indians third baseman had a .366/.453/.841 slash line during the months of September and October. In that span, he recorded 30 hits, nine doubles, ten home runs, 24 RBI, and 11 walks to ten strikeouts.
Final Thoughts
In the end, all six of the aforementioned players are deserving MVP candidates. Each player played a significant role in their team’s success this year. Regardless of who wins, all six players can be proud of their contributions in 2020 and look to repeat those contributions come 2021.
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