Awards Season: The MVPs

"But Ohtani also pitches!"  That's the whiny refrain we've heard for months from the morons who insist Aaron Judge shouldn't be AL MVP simply because Ohtani's a unicorn who can do something no one else in the Majors can.  I suppose we should, as long as he's healthy, just automatically anoint him as AL MVP every year until the end of his career then!  Which is, of course, ridiculous.  Kinda like how using the fact that Ohtani also pitches as your only argument for why he should be MVP is also ridiculous.

None of this is meant to downplay Shohei Ohtani's brilliance in any way.  He finished fourth in Cy Young voting and most likely second in MVP voting.  And it's true that his pitching stats this season were better than they were last year.  But the difference between last season, when he was the unanimous MVP, and this season is that this year he wasn't the story.  Someone else was.

I watched Aaron Judge all season, so I'll admit to being a bit biased.  But watching him all season let me see the things that went beyond his otherworldly numbers.  Setting the AL record for home runs, leading the Majors in every offensive category except batting average, and nearly winning the triple crown should be more than enough.  And the fact that there's even a conversation is a testament to Ohtani.  But, frankly, the race shouldn't be particularly close.

Judge's stats speak for themselves.  They aren't what made him this season's AL MVP, though.  They were just part of the equation.  He's a Gold Glove-caliber right fielder, but spent much of the season playing center so that the Yankees could put a better lineup on the field.  He played every day.  Yes, he was chasing the home run record.  But it was also because no one else on the team could hit!  Judge literally carried the team on his back for six weeks...and they ended up winning 99 games and a division title!  All of this while taking a bet on himself after turning down an extension in Spring Training.

Fortunately, this ridiculous "debate" is coming to an end.  Judge will be AL MVP, Ohtani will finish second, and Yordan Alvarez will finish third.  Although, if I had a vote, I would've spent a long time considering putting Alvarez second and Ohtani third.  Because Alvarez's numbers would be MVP-caliber if not for Judge, and he played for a Houston team that won 106 games and the World Series.

Cleveland's Jose Ramirez probably finished fourth.  And with good reason.  I think sometimes people forget how good Jose Ramirez is, but he's one of the best all-around players in the American League.  This season, he also provided a valuable veteran presence for a very young Guardians team.

Who else fills out the 10-man ballot?  Well, I've got another Guardian in Andres Gimenez, and, even though Boston had a terrible year, Rafael Devers sure didn't!  Xander Bogaerts didn't either, even if his numbers weren't Devers-like.  I'm even giving Julio Rodriguez some rookie love.  Meanwhile, you had Bo Bichette leading the AL in hits while playing 159 games virtually all over the field for Toronto.  Kyle Tucker also had a really good year in Houston.  So did Jose Altuve.  And Justin Verlander.

So, it's pretty obvious who I've got No. 1.  And, as tempting as it was to make Alvarez No. 2, I couldn't do it.  So he goes behind Ohtani.  As for the rest of my top 10, here it is: 4. Ramirez, 5. Devers, 6. Bichette, 7. Rodriguez, 8. Gimenez, 9. Tucker, 10. Bogaerts.

Over in the National League, it's nowhere near as clear-cut.  But there's still a clear favorite.  Paul Goldschmidt, amazingly, has never won an MVP before, although he has finished second twice and third once.  This season should be the one when he finally takes home the hardware.

It could even be a Cardinals 1-2 with Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado.  With those two and a rejuvenated Albert Pujols in the middle of the lineup, is it a surprise that St. Louis won the division?  The numbers are remarkably similar, too.  Goldschmidt had a much higher average, but in everything else they were virtually even (home runs: Goldschmidt 35, Arenado 30; RBIs: Goldschmidt 115, Arenado 103; doubles: Arenado 42, Goldschmidt 41).  What's crazy is that Arenado finished second on the team in every category except doubles.  Which shows how good Goldschmidt's numbers were.

You want teammates with virtually identical numbers?  May I present the Dodgers' Freddie Freeman and Trea Turner?  (Even their jersey numbers are consecutive!)  They both hit 21 homers and had 100 RBIs, and Freeman had 199 hits to Turner's 194.  Freeman did have the advantage in virtually everything else, though, (except for stolen bases) so I've gotta put him higher on the final list.

Don't worry, I didn't forget about Manny Machado, who'll have his second top three finish in three years.  Like fellow finalists Goldschmidt and Arenado, he's never been an MVP, either.  So, at least that little tidbit will no longer be true for one of them.  While I still think it'll be Goldschmidt (who'd get my vote), an argument could easily be made for Machado.  A .298 average, 172 hits, 32 homers, 37 doubles, 102 RBIs.

The National League top three is very solid.  But so are the other positions lower on the MVP ballot, which should include some teammates on teams other than the Cardinals and Dodgers.  Teams like the two 100-win clubs in the NL East.

From the Mets, you've got Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil.  Alonso had a league-leading 131 RBIs and finished second with 40 homers.  McNeil, meanwhile, had an MLB-best .326 batting average, and he only struck out 61 times in 533 at-bats!  The Braves, meanwhile, had Austin Riley and Dansby Swanson.  Riley came into his own during the 2021 World Series and followed it up with a 38-home run season in 2022.  Swanson played every game (which nobody does anymore, and is even more important when you consider the number of injuries the Braves had, especially in the infield) and was just as productive offensively as Riley.  (You could even make an argument for Matt Olson to be a third Brave in the top 10.)
 
And, even though his average was only .218, you know how the sabermetric crowd looks beyond batting average, so Kyle Schwarber should definitely be in the discussion.  He's not a leadoff hitter, but hit leadoff for the Phillies most of the season and led the NL with 46 home runs.  Schwarber even stole 10 bases!  I'm also in the camp that Sandy Alcantara should draw some MVP consideration after unanimously winning the Cy Young.

Still, everybody's numbers pale in comparison to what Goldschmidt did this season.  Goldschmidt doesn't compare to Judge, but he doesn't need to.  And he towers over the rest of the National League.  Rounding out the ballot, I've got: 2. Machado, 3. Arenado, 4. Alonso, 5. Freeman, 6. Riley, 7. Turner, 8. Alcantara, 9. McNeil, 10. Swanson.