Nick Castellanos looking like an MVP for Cincinnati Reds

In a 60-game season, it’s never too early for Nick Castellanos MVP hype

Castellanos power is rounding into form in a big way for the Cincinnati Reds, as the 28-year-old slugger now has six home runs in 11 games, making his case for early-season MVP. The former Detroit Tiger and Chicago Cub already won NL Player of the Week honors, and his electric start has been overshadowed by the COVID-19 outbreaks in both the St. Louis Cardinals and Miami Marlins’ clubhouses. Should the season be completed, as Rob Manfred insists it will be, there’s no better early candidate than Castellanos to take home the hardware.

With a ridiculous slash line of .382/.462/.912 and an OPS of 1.373, Castellanos has come up large when the Reds needed it. Joey Votto has missed time after self-reporting COVID-19 symptoms, while the Reds rotation has faltered despite immense potential heading into the season.

Castellanos is the driving force behind the Reds’ recent win streak

At 5-5, the Reds are a clear second place in the NL Central, three games behind the Chicago Cubs. Castellanos award chances are likely tied to his team’s success, and being surrounded by the likes of Votto, Mike Moustakas and Eugenio Suarez on a daily basis is sure to help him pad his stats.

Should this string of success not be just a flash in the pan, and rather the new normal for a player who’s always shown this kid of potential in bursts, Castellanos’ prolonged dominance will not go unnoticed, even if his fielding could use some work.

Heck, Castellanos took Shane Beiber deep on Tuesday night, a man previously thought un-hittable in 2020. Beiber entered his start against the Reds having given up no runs in 14 innings of work. That all changed when he ran into Castellanos.

It turns out Beiber is human, after all.

When the Reds signed Castellanos to a four-year, $64 million deal this offseason, the hope was he could make his production post-trade deadline, in which he was a force in the middle of the Cubs lineup after being acquired from the Tigers, the new norm. So far, that’s proven to be the case and then some.