MLB Quarter Season Awards The first quarter of the baseball season has been filled with surprises (see Phillies), punches (see Jose Bautista’s face), strikeouts (see Max Scherzer), and more. Now after 40 games it is time to hand out the quarter season awards. Some are your typical awards and some are new. Let’s have a look… American League MVP- Depending on which metrics you prefer, this could be half a dozen different players. If you like home runs and RBIs then Robinson Cano is your MVP as he is leading the AL in RBIs with 36 and tied for the lead in HR with 12. If you prefer batting average, on base percentage, WAR and hits, then Jose Altuve is your MVP as he is leading all of those categories except batting average (he is in second). If you like an all around star who has taken his average team to first place in his division, look no further than Manny Machado whose slash line of .319/.377/.625 is nothing to scoff at. If you are looking for an all around star whose team is below average look no further than Mike Trout whose OPS is 200 points higher then the next person on his team. He continues to play at an MVP level but has very little support around him. Verdict- Robinson Cano Cy Young- There is not too much convention for this award. Chris Sale …show more content…
In the NL there are another half dozen candidates for MVP. Daniel Murphy is batting .397 and is leading the league in OPS and Offensive WAR and is second in total bases and doubles. His teammate, Bryce Harper is first in on base percentage and walks, and top ten in other major categories. Yoenis Cespedes is leading the league in Slugging, Home-Runs and RBIs and has accounted for more than 25% of his teams RBIS. Nolan Arenado is leading in runs scored, tied for the lead in Home-runs, and tied for second in RBIs. He also has the highest WAR of any position player in the league due to his defensive