Fansided

MLB awards watch: Bryce Harper rolls toward MVP

By John Buhler

May 29, 2017; San Francisco, CA, USA; Washington Nationals right fielder Bryce Harper (34) at bat against the San Francisco Giants during the first inning at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
May 29, 2017; San Francisco, CA, USA; Washington Nationals right fielder Bryce Harper (34) at bat against the San Francisco Giants during the first inning at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 30, 2017; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Rockies center fielder Charlie Blackmon (19) on deck in the first inning against the Seattle Mariners at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
May 30, 2017; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Rockies center fielder Charlie Blackmon (19) on deck in the first inning against the Seattle Mariners at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /

Runner-Ups

American League

2

Ervin Santana

RHP, Minnesota Twins

We have to toss former PED usage aside when discussing how remarkable of a first two month it has been for Minnesota Twins ace Ervin Santana. He combination of fastball and slider has set a-blaze the American League. Without Santana, are the Twins even respectable? With him, they are 26-22 and in the mix in the AL Central.

Santana is very much an AL Cy Young candidate this year. He is 7-2 on the year with a 1.75 ERA, a 0.844 WHIP, and 56 strikeouts. If you need further reason to see just how valuable he has been for the Twins, just look at his 3.0 WAR. When he’s dealing, Santana is cooking with straight up napalm from the mound.

National League

2

Charlie Blackmon

OF, Colorado Rockies

We’ve known for a while now that the Colorado Rockies can hit and that they’ve done a great job in rebuilding through MLB Drafts. While the young arms have perfectly accented the Mile High bats in 2017, we need to respect the first two months outfielder Charlie Blackmon has had at the plate.

He’s not just a great leadoff hitter with the filthiest beard in baseball. The dude can flat-out rake. He is hitting .329/.364/.625 with 13 home runs, 46 runs batted in and 38 runs scored. Though his 1.6 WAR isn’t anything incredible, let it sink in that Colorado is 33-21 through 54 games. This could be a team that wins the NL Pennant in October.

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