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As we enter the month of June, a quarter of the baseball season has already passed. While it’s still early in the season, it’s never too early to look at the landscape of players performing at a level deserving of accolades.
The early contenders for this season’s AL MVP award are no strangers to it. Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge and Yordan Alvarez were all finalists for the award last season and each player has already made an early case for this year’s top honor.
But each star also faces an interesting challenge in this year’s pursuit of the prize.
Shohei Ohtani | Los Angeles Angels
Shohei Ohtani is in a similar position that his teammate Mike Trout found himself in after entering the league in 2011. You could give Ohtani the MVP every season, and in most years it would be the right decision.
The modern-day Babe Ruth is once again making his case to be the MVP in 2023. If it wasn’t for a historic season by Aaron Judge, he’d already have two MVPs and would be looking to tie Trout with his third award.
But here’s the $600 million question looming over Anaheim. If the Angels are not in serious contention at the trade deadline, many around the industry believe the Angels would move their two-way superstar. And if the Angels were to trade Ohtani at the deadline, could he win MVP?
History says no.
No player who was traded and/or changed leagues via mid-season trade has ever been named MVP in the same season. The closest thing to such an instance was Cubs right-hander Rick Sutcliffe, who was traded from Cleveland to Chicago in 1984. Sutcliffe went on to win the NL Cy Young Award and finished fourth in MVP voting.
But if there’s any player in baseball that is used to making history, it’s Ohtani. The 2021 AL MVP is currently on pace for 39 homers at the plate and 233 strikeouts on the mound, which would be a new career high. Ohtani is probably the frontrunner at this point for AL MVP, but if there’s anything that could stop his chances at a second AL MVP award, it might be him finally playing for a postseason contender.
Aaron Judge | New York Yankees
The reigning AL MVP’s 2022 award hasn’t even gotten cold and he has already started his campaign for his second. Judge’s 62-homer season was as historic as it was dominant; the only real question when the season ended was who was going to finish in second place.
Judge has followed up his historic ‘22 campaign with a season that has the makings of another MVP-worthy year.
Judge was playing well when he went on the IL in late April with a hip strain. He was hitting homers, getting on base and setting the tone for the Yankees, who hadn’t found their stride at that point. But since returning from the IL on May 9, Judge has been otherworldly. The Yankees’ captain has a 1.402 OPS over that span with 12 homers and has quietly taken the AL lead in home runs.
It’s not easy to capture a second straight MVP award. In fact, since 2000, it’s only been done three times by Miguel Cabrera (2012-13), Albert Pujols (2008-09) and Barry Bonds (2001-04). But if Judge can keep up this blistering pace, he’ll be hard to deny.
Yordan Alvarez | Houston Astros
I picked Yordan Alvarez to be my AL MVP before the season began, and he has already started to make a compelling case. Last season, Alvarez finished third in MVP voting, and this season he’s making a push toward another top-three finish.
If there’s something that has made the Astros’ slugger such a force since coming into the league, it’s been his consistency. Each year, you can pencil him in for 30+ homers, 30 doubles, a .400 on-base percentage and a slugging percentage well above .600. But he’s already shown that he’s as good of a hitter as he is a slugger. Even when the Astros were struggling, it’s been Alvarez who has remained a force.
The only thing working against Alvarez outside of the others in the MVP race is going to be his position.
While not a true full-time designated hitter, Alvarez does split his time between the outfield and DHing. While there is close to a 50-50 split, no player who has been a DH as much as Alvarez has ever won MVP. While David Ortiz was the best to ever do it and has five top-five MVP finishes, the closest he ever came to winning the award was finishing second in 2005.
The numbers always tell the story and if they’re there for Alvarez, he’ll get his shot.
In the Hunt: Marcus Semien | Wander Franco | Bo Bichette | Yandy Díaz
Who knows who the finalists for this year’s AL MVP award will ultimately be? But one thing is certain, the stacked race to find the contenders will make it worth the wait.
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