This year has brought the limelight to many new players, including names like Jose Abreu, Masahiro Tanaka and Clayton Kershaw. These players put up numbers that none had before, putting them in the conversation for postseason MLB awards.
However, these races are not done yet. There are many fighting for a place among the league’s best. Here’s where we stand in the MLB awards races this season.
American League
MVP
This race could be one of the closest in all of baseball, given that no player is having a season like Miguel Cabrera did last year. It almost seems as if no one wants to win MVP at this point.
Mike Trout leads a pool of candidates, batting .289 with a 6.0 WAR for the Los Angeles Angels. He ranks second in WAR behind Josh Donaldson, but has more home runs, RBIs, stolen bases and walks. These numbers alone make me think Trout will take this crown.
Cy Young
Felix Hernandez is the clear front-runner in this race. He leads the AL in ERA, WHIP and ranks second in strikeouts. The Seattle Mariners starter has been as strong as ever this season, helping a team that is currently in the playoffs.
In choosing a winner, the record of the team sometimes is factored in. The Mariners will finish with a winning record and will give Hernandez a better shot at the title. Unless David Price is dominant down the stretch, Hernandez has this award sealed.
Rookie of the Year
Jose Abreu has had this award wrapped up since Tanaka went on the DL with an elbow injury in July. Even with Tanaka in the race, Abreu could have won.
He is tied for first in the AL in home runs (31) and ranks first in OPS (.958) and second in RBIs (89). Those numbers are almost good enough to be crowned MVP, much less Rookie of the Year. There simply hasn’t been a rookie like Abreu in years.
National League
MVP
This race will come down to candidates that play completely different roles on their respective teams. Giancarlo Stanton and Clayton Kershaw make great cases to be MVP, much like Justin Verlander and Jose Bautista did in 2011.
What this race will come down to is the success that the teams have, which will give the nod to Kershaw. It also helps that he has a 1.86 ERA and a 0.84 WHIP.
Cy Young
Did I mention Kershaw? He’s a shoe-in for this award unless Adam Wainwright goes on a late run that includes multiple shutouts. Kershaw simply has been the best pitcher in baseball all season.
He leads NL pitchers in ERA, WHIP, WAR and sits third in strikeouts. With these numbers, it will hard for anyone to unseat him from the position that he is bound to finish the season in.
Rookie of the Year
The NL Rookie of the Year will seem underwhelming compared to Abreu, but there’s one candidate that seems to be gaining more attention than the others. In a field of very inexperienced players, Billy Hamilton has played well in his 118 games with the Cincinnati Reds.
Hamilton not only steals bases (he has 45 of them), but he’s batting .271 with 24 doubles on the season. He came to the Reds as a base running specialist, but now seems to be a threat at the plate. However, the New York Mets’ Jacob deGrom could steal the award if he has a strong September.