5 Reasons Why Robinson Cano of New York Yankees Will Win the 2012 AL MVP Award

Justin Verlander won the 2011 AL MVP Award, but Robinson Cano was no slouch. In 2010 and 2011 he finished third and sixth, respectively, in the voting. He is right on the cusp of winning.

Cano also plays for a perennial contender, so that always helps.

What is Cano's potential and why should he be considered the favorite to win the 2012 AL MVP Award?

Let's find out.

He is Just Hitting His Prime

Cano is 29 years old—he turns 30 on October 22nd. That is right when players start to hit their prime.

Cano has already had a good career and he will get even better over the next few years.

So far in his career, Cano has hit for average—he hit .342 in 2006 and hit .320 in both 2009 and 2010—and has hit for power—he has hit an average of 27 home runs over the last three seasons.

He Now Has Legitimate Protection

Cano has spent most of his career hitting fifth in the Yankees' lineup, and for 2011 he was getting protected by Nick Swisher. Swisher is good hitter; he can hit 25 home runs in a given season, but he is not as good as Cano's new protection.

With Cano batting third in 2012, he will be protected by Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira. Rodriguez had hit at least 30 home runs and 100 RBIs in 13 straight seasons before his injury-riddled 2011 season, and Teixeira has done the same in seven straight seasons.

With these two batters hitting behind Cano, pitchers will pitch more fastballs for strikes to him, instead of pitching around him like they did in 2011.

He Plays in Yankee Stadium

Yankee Stadium is very well-known for being friendly to hitters, especially left-handed hitters.

This reputation is well-deserved because of the the right-field fence only being 314 feet from home field. This is not saying Cano is a product of Yankee Stadium, as he has the power to hit the ball into the second and even third deck in right field.

The point is that this advantage cannot hurt Cano. If two or three fly balls turn into home runs because of the short porch in right, they show up as home runs on the stat sheet exactly the same as an upper-deck shot.

He is on Fire

Cano ended 2011 on an absolute tear. He carried the New York Yankees to an AL East crown and a postseason berth. Even when they lost in the American League Division Series to the Detroit Tigers, he was spectacular.

Stats Since August 1st (59 games):

.315/.359/.608, 14 HRs, 49 RBIs, 21 doubles and two triples

If he did that over a full 162-game season, he would hit 39 HRs, 135 RBIs, 58 doubles and six triples. That would have put him eighth in the majors in batting average, tied for first in slugging percentage, tied for third in HRs, first in RBIs, first in doubles and 24th in triples in 2011.

Those sound like MVP numbers to me.

Will he be that good in 2012? Probably not, but I think he has a chance to at least come close to those numbers.

He is Ready for 2012 After 2 Straight Failed Seasons

The New York Yankees have been bounced out of the postseason before reaching the World Series in the last two seasons. Neither of those early exits were Cano's fault, as he hit .333/.417/.736 with six HRs and 15 RBIs in 14 games over the last two postseasons.

This does not mean Cano is not still hungry to succeed. When the Yankees won the World Series in 2009, Cano was a non-factor, as he hit .193/.266/.281 with zero HRs and six RBIs in 15 games.

Cano will be ready for the postseason and will be looking to lead the Yankees to their 28th World Series championship.

Final 2012 Numbers

2012 Projected Stats: .325/.401/.602, 37 HR, 133 RBI, 51 2B, 7 3B, 7 SB

The five reasons already stated in this slideshow are the reasons he will put these monster numbers.

These numbers are not as ridiculous as they seem. Cano has hit .342 in his career, he also  hit .320 in 2009 and 2010.

Cano obviously has the raw power to hit more than 37 home runs because he won the 2011 Home Run Derby, but he has to choose to hit those home runs. Cano has thrived so far in his career hitting double after double, but if he changes his approach he could easily add eight home runs to his career high.

If Cano gets anywhere near these numbers and the New York Yankees beat out the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox by winning the AL East he will be the 2012 AL MVP.