MLB: Handicapping the 2010 AL MVP Race

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With less than two months remaining in the baseball season it is time to start handicapping who has the best shot at winning the MVP Awards.  We already took a look at the front runners in the National League so now it is time to have a look at who the front runners are in the American League.

Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers – After a so-so April and solid May Hamilton has been dominating the American League hitting .418 with 15 homers and 51 RBIs in his last 61 games for the Rangers.  He currently leads the league in hitting and ranks sixth in homers and eighth in RBIs.  He has been a big reason for the Rangers resurgence this season.  His 36 doubles represent a career high and he is just 8 home runs shy of tying his career best of 32.  The one major obstacle standing in his way to winning the MVP Award could be his health.  He has missed four games this season due to nagging injuries.

Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers – Cabrera currently ranks first in the league in RBIs, second in hitting and third in home runs and has flirted with the lead in all three Triple Crown categories much of the season.  He also leads the league in slugging, OBP, and OPS.  He definitely has the numbers to warrant winning the MVP Award, but the major question with Cabrera is how many votes will he lose due to playing on a sub-.500 team?  The Tigers may need to make a serious run down the stretch for Cabrera to avoid losing out to Hamilton.

Adrian Beltre, Boston Red Sox – Strangely enough Beltre has been the one consistent in the Red Sox lineup this year.  As most of their big bats have fallen by the wayside with injuries this season Beltre has been the one guy keeping the offense afloat.  He currently ranks third in the league in hitting and is 7th in RBIs and fifth in slugging.  He will carry some favor with the voters because he plays in Boston on a team that has been decimated with injuries this season.  As long as the Sox stay on pace to win 90-plus games Beltre is going to be in the mix of the MVP race.

Robinson Cano, New York Yankees – Cano put up huge numbers the first half of the season, but since seeing his average peak at .376 on June 10 his average has steadily declined to .327.  Since the end of June he is hitting just .268 and will need a big push these last few weeks to get back into MVP contention.  He currently ranks fourth in the league in hitting, fifth in OBP, and fifth in runs scored.

Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox – Konerko is second in the league in homers and ranks in the top ten in RBIs, OBP, OPS, and slugging.  He has been a big reason the Sox are still in contention in the Central this year.

Delmon Young, Minnesota Twins – In a year when Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau have struggled to stay healthy Young has been a rock in the middle of the order for the Twins ranking 6th in the league in hitting and RBIs.  If not for Young’s breakout season at the plate the Twins would be struggling to stay in the playoff race.  However, he will probably end up losing some votes to Joe Mauer who is having a strong season of his own.

Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins – Mauer’s numbers have dropped off quite a bit on the heels of last year’s MVP season for the Twins.  However, he is still fifth in the league in hitting and leads the league in doubles.  He does not quite have the numbers to warrant being the MVP this year and he will lose some votes to Young who has arguably been just as valuable to the Twins offense this season as Mauer has.

Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays – Bautista leads the league in homers and is third in the league in RBIs.  Unfortunately for him the Jays are 9 games behind in the wild card standings meaning Bautista is unlikely to get serious consideration from voters despite having 8 more home runs than anyone else in the league.

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