The 2015 MLB season is winding down and eventually we’ll know for sure who stands above the rest, both in the standings and in individual statistics. Most people will only really care if their team makes the playoffs, but for the ones that don’t, often player awards are something to hang your hat on.
That can be the case with an MVP award, which at the very worst suggests the team who holds the winner had one of the best (or most entertaining) players in all of baseball. It’s always going to be up for debate, and if it goes to a guy who doesn’t make the playoffs there are sure to be questions. But we have our top contenders and we’re getting close to an actual verdict.
Let’s see if our predictions can’t ring true as we break down the lasting contenders for the AL and NL MVP awards:
AL MVP Top Contenders: Nelson Cruz, Dallas Keuchel, Josh Donaldson, Mike Trout
Cruz is on a bad team, so he has that working against him. He’s also not a beastly defender and is hanging his hat largely on his heavy bat. That’s fine, since he’s one behind Chris Davis for the league lead in homers. Keuchel is our only pitcher making the list from the AL, as he’s been quite the force for the Houston Astros all season – specifically at home. He hasn’t lost in his home stadium all year and has been unflappable there.
The two mashers that probably are going head to head for the AL MVP, of course, are Josh Donaldson and Mike Trout. Trout was surging and enjoying an amazing year earlier in 2015, as he had the Angels in playoff contention. He took a slide in August, though, and so did his team. Donaldson only heated up, though, as he’s within striking distance for the league lead in home runs and has his Jays in position to claim the AL East.
Who Wins: Josh Donaldson
It’s Donaldson, and it shouldn’t be all that close. Not only is Donaldson knocking the long ball and doing it while winning, but he’s doing it all in crunch time when Toronto needs him the most. He doesn’t just go yard and take a break, either, as he’s an efficient hitter (.305 on the year) that brings the power when the Jays need it (119 RBI). You can make an argument for Trout, but barring a crazy September run, this is Donaldson’s MVP trophy to lose.
NL MVP Top Contenders: Clayton Kershaw, Nolan Arenado, Jake Arrieta, Yoenis Cespedes, Bryce Harper, Paul Goldschmidt
Kershaw is Kershaw. He’s the best pitcher in the game and has been absolutely unstoppable for the past two months. Even when the run support isn’t there, he’s brought his A game, night after night. Arrieta has been a pretty close second, but he had more struggles this year. He’s been as close to perfect as you can get lately, though.
As for hitting, pick your poison. Arenado has been a total hammer with the long ball, but he gets a slight discredit for playing at Coors and being on a bad team. The same in a big way for Goldy, which probably puts this NL MVP race down to Cespedes and Harper if we’re only talking hitting. Harper has been a stretched out machine for much of the year, while Cespedes has been rock solid and really found a way to turn it on ever since being traded to the Mets.
Who Wins: Clayton Kershaw
Who else? Pitchers don’t normally win MVP awards, but Kershaw isn’t a normal pitcher and his dominance needs to be respected. It’s true that Kershaw falls apart come playoff time, but who knows, maybe this season is different? For now, all we can go off of is the fact that his Dodgers own the NL West and no one has striked out more batters in baseball this year. Other pitchers have more wins and a few have a slightly better ERA, but no one has been more dominant. When picking a league MVP, you have to ask yourself two questions: could that player’s team still be elite without them and would baseball be the same?
No and no. Kershaw should be the NL MVP.
Got a different take? Let us hear it in the comments below!
