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MLB Awards Watch: The wasteland of American League rookies

By Brad Rowland

Tampa Bay Rays right fielder Steven Souza Jr. (20) hits a solo home run off Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Miguel Gonzalez (50) (not pictured) during the second inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Tampa Bay Rays right fielder Steven Souza Jr. (20) hits a solo home run off Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Miguel Gonzalez (50) (not pictured) during the second inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Toronto Blue Jays designated hitter Josh Donaldson (20) hits a double to score two runs against the Miami Marlins in the seventh inning at Rogers Centre. The Jays won 11-3. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Toronto Blue Jays designated hitter Josh Donaldson (20) hits a double to score two runs against the Miami Marlins in the seventh inning at Rogers Centre. The Jays won 11-3. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports /

AL MVP

  1. Josh Donaldson, 3B Toronto Blue Jays – Donaldson leads the AL race for the second straight week, but in fairness, it isn’t nearly the runaway that is occurring in the NL. Toronto’s star third baseman has been lights-out this season, with 16 home runs to go with Platinum Glove-caliber defense, and that is tough to overcome. It isn’t often that someone wins the MVP without leading in any major category, but when a player is elite defensively with top-5 rankings across the board, the picture comes together.
  2. Mike Trout, OF Los Angeles Angels – To make things simple, Trout is always in the mix. The reigning MVP has 16 home runs and 8 stolen bases to go with a .283/.373/.561 slash line and elite defense, and that looks like an MVP profile to me. Trout currently ranks just third (gasp!) in fWAR among American League players, but if Vegas posted odds on the AL MVP, he’d be the “favorite”.
  3. Jason Kipnis, 2B Cleveland Indians – Kipnis doesn’t have the power of a traditional MVP candidate, but because he’s been absurdly effective in every other regard, he lands here. The 2014 season was disastrous for the now 28-year-old second baseman, but the streaky Kipnis has turned things around to the tune of a .338/.414/.518 slash line in 56 games this season. It certainly helps that he leads the AL in fWAR (3.7), but even if we simply ignore the more “advanced” metrics, Kipnis has been tremendous.

Next: MLB Records That Will Never Be Broken

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