Making the Case for Each Top 2016 MLB MVP Candidate
Among the reasons Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz, who notably doesn't play in the field, can be considered an MVP candidate is because the award doesn't reward defensive prowess.
The award annually acknowledges players in each league who have had outstanding offensive seasons. Such a player can be mediocre defensively and still win the award—or, in the case of Ortiz, not play defense at all. Even with new statistical measures for defense, no player can be a defensive stalwart and an average hitter and receive consideration for MVP.
The following candidates have had outstanding offensive seasons. Who has the best shot at MVP in 2016?
Corey Seager, Los Angeles Dodgers
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Despite placing an MLB-record 27 players on the disabled list—including Clayton Kershaw, baseball's best pitcher at the time of his injury—the Los Angeles Dodgers hold a five-game lead over the San Francisco Giants in the National League West.
Manager Dave Roberts deserves as much credit—maybe even a little more—as he's received for steering the club toward October.
But while Roberts is the odds-on favorite to win NL Manager of the Year, the Dodgers wouldn't be in playoff position without shortstop Corey Seager's performance on the field.
Seager is hitting .317/.374/.530 with 25 homers and 69 RBI. His batting average ranks sixth in the NL. Seager is more certain to win NL Rookie of the Year than Roberts is to win the league's managerial award.
He's one of the rare rookies, though, who should also be considered for MVP. It isn't reckless to think he'll win a number of these awards in his future. It likely won't happen this year, but failing to give him consideration is a dismissal of his importance to a playoff-bound team.
Seager leads all Dodgers regulars in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging and runs scored. He trails Justin Turner, the team leader in homers and RBI, by two and 12 in each respective category.
The latter is largely a product of the fact that Seager regularly hits second and Turner third. Turner is the direct beneficiary of Seager's high OBP.
Daniel Murphy, Washington Nationals
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Washington Nationals second baseman Daniel Murphy couldn't have scripted a better "I told you so" 2016 campaign.
He won 2015 NLCS MVP in a four-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs. During that series, he hit .529/.556/1.294 with four homers and six RBI.
But a poor showing in the World Series (.150/.320/.150) ended his 2015 campaign with a whimper and may have left the Mets feeling like Murphy's October run was a flash in the pan.
New York elected not to re-sign him this offseason, and he left for the Nationals in free agency.
Fast-forward to September 2016, a season in which Murphy is the chief reason Washington is 10 games ahead of the Mets in the NL East and New York is fighting for its playoff life. Murphy leads MLB with a .348 batting average, his .393 OBP ranks tied for fourth in the NL, and his .598 slugging percentage ranks second in all of baseball.
Take him off the Nationals roster, and it's difficult to imagine Washington in the playoff picture, especially considering reigning NL MVP Bryce Harper's shockingly underwhelming 2016 campaign (.246/.380/.453).
And if Murphy were on the Mets, who have been offensively inept this season, they might feel more comfortable about their October prospects.
Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs
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Perhaps Kris Bryant's best platform for his NL MVP candidacy may also be what hurts him.
All season, the Cubs have been baseball's best team by record, talent level and any other measure through which teams are characterized.
Say what? Before you go all apoplectic, let's attempt to decipher what that means. We'll start with the good.
Bryant has the best numbers on baseball's best team, which generally means a player is valuable. He is hitting .296/.390/.565 with 37 homers and 95 RBI. The power numbers are what stick out the most.
MVP awards are generally given to players with slugging ability, and Bryant's is as good as any in baseball. He is tied for the NL lead in home runs and tied for fifth in the Senior Circuit in RBI—behind teammate Anthony Rizzo's 101 RBI.
Here's where playing for the Cubs gets a little muddied if you're vying for the NL's most prestigious individual award.
For much of the season, Rizzo, too, was an MVP candidate. Bryant leads the tandem in all offensive categories except RBI—albeit by small margins. Rizzo is hitting .290/.386/.552.
Given that Bryant's numbers are better, it's difficult to formulate an argument that Rizzo should win the award. The fact that their numbers are so close, though, could hurt Bryant.
Many people view MVP as an acknowledgment of a player's overall value to his team. Take Bryant off the uber-talented Cubs, and the team would still likely win the NL Central.
Aside from Rizzo, it's a stacked lineup that includes stars such as shortstop Addison Russell and infielders Javier Baez and Ben Zobrist.
So, ultimately, Bryant's candidacy is determined by how one views the award.
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David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox
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Deciphering which player on the Boston Red Sox is most deserving of the AL MVP is like choosing who was a better person—Gandhi or Mother Teresa.
Arguments can be made for second baseman Dustin Pedroia (.329/.389/.462) or outfielder Mookie Betts (.311/.352/.540). But it's the season Ortiz has posted that has poked out among a group of offensive stars.
The most religious of baseball sabermetricians might argue that since Ortiz doesn't play defense, his value isn't nearly as great as other players who play the field. But the MVP award has never been determined by a player's defensive abilities. The winner is always one who has posted an outstanding season offensively.
Ortiz's numbers are staggering for a player in his prime, let alone one who turned 40 before the season even began.
Big Papi is slashing .314/.400/.619 with 33 homers and 111 RBI. He leads the Red Sox in on-base percentage, slugging, home runs and RBI. He trails Pedroia by .015 points for the team lead in batting average and would lead every other AL team in the category not named the Los Angeles Angels or Houston Astros (Note: He would be tied for the team lead with Francisco Lindor if he played for the Cleveland Indians).
As is the case for Bryant, what might hurt Ortiz is that there are other worthy MVP candidates on his team. A stacked team lessens the value of an individual.
Jose Altuve, Houston Astros
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Perhaps no player in MLB is having a better offensive season than Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve. Among AL hitters, he ranks first in batting average (.341), second in on-base percentage (.401), sixth in slugging (.551) and tied for ninth in RBI (94). He has 24 homers.
Most impressively: Altuve only has 11 more strikeouts than walks—a differential unheard of for a power hitter.
Houston's odds of making the playoffs are not good. The Astros are 3.5 games out of the wild card with five teams ahead of them in the standings. That hurts Altuve. It's important to note a great player on an underperforming team may not have any value at all.
Without Altuve, though, Houston's season would have gone from disappointing to a lost cause.
Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels
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It's pretty safe to firmly stamp Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout on any list of baseball's best players for the next decade. That includes annual arguments concerning the MVP award.
Trout debuted in 2011. In every season since, he has won the Silver Slugger for his position and either won AL MVP or finished second.
This season may be his best yet.
Trout's .317 batting average is hovering close to his career-best .326, which he posted in 2012. At .434, his on-base percentage would be a career mark, and he will draw 100 walks for the second time in his career.
With 89 RBI, he is on pace to net the second-highest single-season total of his career. If he goes on a tear, Trout could eclipse his personal mark of 111 RBI in 2014—the only year he drove in more than 100 runs.
That the Angels are fighting with the Oakland A's for fourth place in the AL West makes it seem as if Trout is wasting his talent playing for the market's second-favorite team.
Statistics current through September 14 games.
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