Four players have legitimate cases to win the AL MVP award. None has distanced himself from the pack. Straw poll anyone?
Miguel Cabrera
Case for » Cabrera ranks in the top three in average, homers, RBI, runs and OPS. His Triple Crown stat line (.328/38/126) is the best in the AL.
Case against » Nine of the last 10 AL MVPs played for playoff teams. Detroit, which has been playing .500 ball for months, hasn’t been a factor in the pennant race.
Josh Hamilton
Case for » Baseball’s best five-tool player leads the AL in batting average, slugging percentage and OPS. His white-hot summer (.437/14/48 in June and July) catapulted the Rangers to an insurmountable lead in the AL West.
Case against » Bruised ribs have sidelined Hamilton since early September. The stretch run is not a good time for an MVP candidate to go on the shelf.
José Bautista
Case for » There’s only one, and that’s Bautista’s ridiculous lead in the home run race. His 52 bombs entering play Tuesday were 14 more than anyone else in the AL and 10 more than anyone else in baseball.
Case against » Um, how about everything else? Bautista’s hitting .262, has zero name recognition and plays for a Blue Jays team buried in the AL East.
Robinson Cano
Case for » In a year where the bigger Yankee stars are hitting well below their career averages, the durable Cano has been a rock in the middle of the lineup, posting career highs in home runs, RBI and slugging percentage.
Case against » Even in down years, both Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez have better power numbers than Cano. He lacks Hamilton’s star power and Cabrera’s numbers.
The verdict
Hamilton. He got the Rangers to the playoffs and locked up the batting title in August. Hamilton is the best combination of stats and star power on this list.
