Who are the leading candidates for AL MVP?
Every season since 1931, baseball writers from around the country have been tasked with a very important responsibility—choosing one player in the National League and one player in the American League whose performance throughout the season is worthy of being called the most valuable in baseball.
Every year there are always a number of potential candidates that start to stand out as the season goes on, and this season is no different. With most teams having played close to 75 percent of their games, there are a definitely a few players whose performances stand out from the crowd. The top three in the AL are:
Miguel Cabrera
The first baseman for the Detroit Tigers has been having a career year at the age of 27. At one time, he appeared to have a shot at being the first triple-crown winner in the American League since Carl Yastrzemski won it with the Boston Red Sox back in 1967. Through 122 games, he has hit .340 (second in the league) with 31 home runs (third) and 101 RBIs (first), and has been among the league leaders in all three for the bulk of the season. To have the statistics that he has while playing half the season in a pitcher friendly park in Detroit makes his performance even more remarkable.
Cabrera’s contribution at the plate helped keep the Detroit Tigers in the thick of the AL Central division race for much of the season, but as injuries piled up for the team, the Tigers had trouble winning games. They have since fallen far behind the Minnesota Twins and Chicago White Sox in the division. With some of the competition that he will face for the AL MVP playing for division leading teams, his stellar performance could get overlooked for the honor this year.
Josh Hamilton
The power hitting outfielder for the Texas Rangers has had one of the more remarkable rises to the top of the baseball pecking order. After getting drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in 1999, he never fully realized his potential as a professional due to a collection of injuries and drug issues and found himself out of the game in 2004.
Since returning with renewed vigor and purpose in 2007, Hamilton has been nothing short of amazing, especially during the 2010 season. Like Cabrera, he has been at the top of all the major statistical categories, hitting .356 (first in the league), 27 homeruns (eighth), and 82 RBIs (10th).
What helps make Hamilton stand out as a front runner for the AL MVP is what he has done as the season has worn on. Many players tend to experience a dip in production as the season goes on, but Hamilton has instead been even better. Since the All-Star break, he has been hitting .375 overall and almost .400 at home. Over a 65 games span starting on June 1st, he hit .423.
Hamilton has a leg-up on Cabrera thanks to the team that he is playing for. With the Rangers looking to win the division for the first time in a decade, the perceived value of his contribution is that much higher in comparison to Cabrera’s with the Tigers.
Robinson Cano
Second basemen are typically known for their defensive prowess, not their offensive firepower. In the case of New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano, it’s both.
For the defending World Series champions, Cano has been the rock of the lineup and among the team leaders in all major hitting categories. To have a second baseman hitting .323 with 25 homeruns and 86 RBIs for the season would make most teams happy, but Cano has another 40 games of the season to add to those statistics.
When you play for a perennial contender like the Yankees, good things are expected of you. While his performance has been vital to the Yankees remaining in the post season hunt, he will likely need to step up his production to pass up either Cabrera or Hamilton as the AL MVP favorites
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