Unlike the National League MVP race, more people have already decided on the American League MVP winner. Many have Los Angeles Angels designated hitter and starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani. It’s because of some of the unbelievable moments he’s put on display all season. Let’s be realistic, anything could happen with just a few weeks left in the regular season. We’ll proceed to check out Ohtani’s rivals for that American League MVP Award.
AL MVP Candidates
Shohei Ohtani
It’s clear that Shohei Ohtani has simply put up an astonishing season. Los Angeles believed with all their heart that they would be in the running to make the postseason. So much so that they decided not to trade Ohtani and instead, add more depth to the team. That really didn’t pan out that well a month later as the Angels are kicking themselves for that decision. Since Mike Trout has been sidelined and the team losing games, Los Angeles had no real shot at contending this season. Nonetheless, Shohei has shown out in this 2023 MVP campaign.
Ohtani has collected 151 hits, 44 home runs, 95 RBIs, and 20 stolen bases with a .304 batting average. That’s through 135 games and 497 at-bats. It’s unfortunate that Ohtani tore his UCL which ended his pitching campaign. But no matter what, he still ranks second in the AL in K/9 rate using the 130 innings pitched minimum. He leads either the AL or majors in homers, runs, fWAR including 6.6 as a designated hitter, and walks. He’s the undisputed king of the AL.
Kyle Tucker
There’s no arguing that Kyle Tucker has put up a reasonable MVP performance this season, whether he’s on the Houston Astros or not. After sitting in third place in the AL West division for almost the entire season, Houston sits on top of the division with an 80-61 record, and that’s partially due to Tucker’s phenomenal play. He’s been nothing but consistent for an Astros team that needed his bat all year.
Tucker is closing in on a likely 30-30 season as he’s second in the AL in RBI, fourth in slugging and wRC+. He’s also ranked top-10 in homers, steals and fWAR. He might lack the flash of other players in baseball but no one should be fooled by Tucker’s worthiness of a top-five AL MVP finish. He can certainly boost his name in the MVP voting if he proceeds to play great and help the Astros continue to win games.
Corey Seager
The Texas Rangers sit a half-game out from the final AL Wild Card spot. Since the beginning of August, they’ve been slowly sliding out of the American League playoff race. Everyone on the roster is fighting endlessly to get the team back in the position where they once were. Shortstop Corey Seager is one of those guys. Seager would be the AL batting champion for the first time in his career if the season ended today.
Through 97 games this season. Corey has put up 132 hits, 29 home runs, 86 RBIs, and two stolen bases with an AL-leading batting average of .338. He has an on-base percentage of .401 and a slugging percentage of .651. Back in 2015, Seager was named the National League Rookie of the Year. He’s won two Silver Slugger Awards. Corey also won the 2020 World Series with the Dodgers, as well as being named the 2020 World Series MVP, and 2020 NL Championship MVP.
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