MLB: Predicting the Major Statistical League Leaders

With the MLB season winding down, players are fighting to lead some of baseball's most recognizable statistical categories such as home runs, RBI and ERA. Some of these battles have already been won, but others are still very close.

Coming in first in one of these categories could have a major impact for potential free agents. Jose Reyes has a chance to lead the NL in batting average, and Prince Fielder could lead the NL in both home runs and RBI. Both of these players could get bigger contracts if they are league leaders.

AL Batting Title: Michael Young

At the moment, Michael Young is in second place behind Adrian Gonzalez for the AL batting title.

However, there is still a month left to go in the season.

Gonzalez will face a more difficult list of opponents in the coming weeks, and this could be enough for Young to catch up to him. Young has been mired in a bit of a slump, but if he can hit like he was earlier this season, he should be able to raise his average. 

NL Batting Title: Jose Reyes

It looked like Jose Reyes had a chance to lead the MLB in batting average earlier this season, but he was hampered by injuries, and a slump slowed him down.

Reyes still has the edge in the NL over Ryan Braun, though.

Reyes has the ability to beat out infield hits, which gives him the slight edge over Braun. Being that Reyes will be in the last month of his contract, he should pick things up in September.

AL Home Run King: Jose Bautista

Jose Bautista is not running away with the home run title as he was expected to do. In fact, he is just a few home runs ahead of Curtis Granderson, who is in second place.

The Toronto Blue Jays slugger should be able to win the American League home run crown for the second year in a row.

NL Home Run King: Albert Pujols

After the season, Albert Pujols will become a free agent. He is one of the best players in this generation, and he has a chance to lead the National League in home runs for the third consecutive year.

Pujols is said to have been having a down year. If he leads the National League in home runs during his worst season in years, that will give his agent, Dan Lozano, significant leverage in negotiations.

AL RBI Crown: Adrian Gonzalez

The most amazing thing about the American League RBI leaders is the fact that three of the top four are members of the New York Yankees.

However, none of them will win the title.

Adrian Gonzalez has been a massive force in the middle of the Boston Red Sox lineup this year. With the playoff race heating up, Gonzalez should step up and drive in runs at an even higher rate than he is now.

NL RBI Crown: Matt Kemp

Matt Kemp would almost undoubtedly win the National League MVP Award if he played for a team with a winning record. He has a chance to have a 40/40 year while batting over .300 and leading the NL in RBI.

What is most impressive about this is the fact that Kemp has had little help in the Los Angeles Dodgers' lineup.

AL Wins Leader: Justin Verlander

Justin Verlander may win the American League pitching Triple Crown this season. He has been absolutely outstanding this year.

Verlander is running away from the pack as the leader in wins for the American League. He has a chance to win 25 games this season.

NL Wins Leader: Clayton Kershaw and Ian Kennedy (Tie)

Before the season, no one could have predicted that Ian Kennedy would be amongst the league leaders in wins for the National League, let alone on top of it. Kennedy has been a huge part of the Arizona Diamondbacks' success.

Clayton Kershaw is one of the top pitchers in baseball, so it is not much of a surprise that he could potentially lead the National League in wins this year. 

AL ERA Champion: Jered Weaver

Earlier in the season, it looked like Jered Weaver might finish the year with an ERA under 2.00. His ERA has jumped up since then, but he still has a chance to win the AL ERA title.

Weaver has the advantage of pitching in the weakest division in the American League, which means he has a slight edge over the other two pitchers with a chance at the title, Justin Verlander and Josh Beckett.

NL ERA Champion: Johnny Cueto

Johnny Cueto is quietly having the best season of his career; perhaps the reason he is not getting more attention is because of his low win total.

Cueto has struggled in September, and there is a chance he could lose out on the title.

However, with only a few starts left in the year, Cueto should be able to keep his ERA down low enough to win the title.