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MLB awards watch: AL MVP race

By William Schneiderhan

HOUSTON, TX - MAY 08: Michael Brantley #23 of the Houston Astros hits a two run home run in the third inning against the Kansas City Royals at Minute Maid Park on May 8, 2019 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX - MAY 08: Michael Brantley #23 of the Houston Astros hits a two run home run in the third inning against the Kansas City Royals at Minute Maid Park on May 8, 2019 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /
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HOUSTON, TX – MAY 20: Houston Astros left fielder Michael Brantley (23) sprints toward home plate during the baseball game between the Chicago White Sox and Houston Astros on May 20, 2019 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Leslie Plaza Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX – MAY 20: Houston Astros left fielder Michael Brantley (23) sprints toward home plate during the baseball game between the Chicago White Sox and Houston Astros on May 20, 2019 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Leslie Plaza Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

5. Michael Brantley, Houston Astros

.330 BA, 10 HR, 36 RBI, .933 OPS and 2.4 WAR.

Last season, the Houston Astros were banged up for most of the year. Key position players either played through, or sustained injury. The club still fought for a playoff spot but proved no match for the eventual World Series champion Boston Red Sox in the postseason.

Until recently, the Astros have been much healthier, and the results show that. Currently up 7.5 games in the AL West with a record of 37-20, the ‘Stros own one of the top-five offenses in the MLB.

Michael Brantley, a free agent signing, has signed on and fit in nicely. He leads the AL in multi-hit games (26) and hits (70). He is top-five in batting average and doubles, and his OPS is within the top 10. The lefty has also always been a tough strikeout, and this year he is in the top-two percent of the league with a nine percent strikeout percentage.

During his career, Brantley has always been known as a line-to-line, slashing hitter who would find the gaps. This year, he’s been pulling the ball a little bit more, but he has been producing a career-high in hard-contact percentage, at over 42 percent.

Brantley has put up MVP numbers batting in a star-studded lineup, but that doesn’t mean his numbers are a fluke. When he was healthy, he was a .300-plus hitter who would rack up 40-plus doubles, knock 15-20 homers and drive in at least 80 with the Indians.

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