Mookie Betts has exploded onto the scene after his first full season last year. Betts has exceeded his almost all of his projections by a long shot and he still has close to 40 games left. So this poses the question. Is Mookie Betts the AL MVP?
Many will say that Mike Trout is the AL MVP some will bring up that it should be Altuve, Machado or Cabrera, but why not Betts?
Out of all the players in the AL Mookie Betts is tied for seventh among all players in HR's with well established home run hitters above him, including Nelson Cruz, Edwin Encarnacion and Todd Frazier. Betts is in his second full season as a starting outfielder for the Red Sox and has more home runs than players such as Miguel Cabrera, Mike Trout and Manny Machado. We all know that an MVP is not just a home run hitter, he needs to be an all around great player. So let's look a little deeper into Betts.
Betts has moved from his second baseman throughout the minor league to become the starting CF fro the Red Sox last year. Now with the arrival of Jackie Bradley Jr Betts has moved to RF. This could be a tough move for some outfielders,especially at Fenway with the weird outfield. Betts has made one error in all of his 1,004 innings this year, ONE ERROR! This is absurd, just crazy. Betts doesn't just make the routine plays in the outfield. He makes every play in the outfield. He owns one of the best range factors in the AL with a 2.22, which is above the notoriously great defensive outfielder Billy Burns. Betts makes the routine plays, the ridiculous plays and everything in between.
Another asset needed to become the MVP is speed. Not only speed to track down balls hit in the outfield, which is evident in Betts through his Range Factor. But also speed in order to steal bases and eek out potential doubles and triples. Betts is sixth in the entire AL in stolen bases with players such as Rajai Davis( a speed guy) above him. Betts is the perfect 5-tool player. Evident by his power, speed, fielding, contact and arm.
Betts owns a .315 AVG only bested by Jose Altuve who could one day hit over .400.
The last factor that should be taken into account during the MVP voting is whether the player can bring their team to the playoffs or in the playoff picture. This is where Betts is separated from someone like Trout. Betts and the Red Sox currently hold a wild card spot while the Angels are one of the worst teams in the AL.
Final Thoughts: I can't find a single reason why Mookie Betts shouldn't be the MVP. His numbers surpass the other candidates. His team is winning because of him and he does everything at the highest level. But because of Mike Trouts stardom, he will most likely be the MVP. It's a shame.
PS: Jose Altuve even deserves to be MVP over Trout IMO.
(Stats by Baseball-Reference.com)
@belsner133
Many will say that Mike Trout is the AL MVP some will bring up that it should be Altuve, Machado or Cabrera, but why not Betts?
Out of all the players in the AL Mookie Betts is tied for seventh among all players in HR's with well established home run hitters above him, including Nelson Cruz, Edwin Encarnacion and Todd Frazier. Betts is in his second full season as a starting outfielder for the Red Sox and has more home runs than players such as Miguel Cabrera, Mike Trout and Manny Machado. We all know that an MVP is not just a home run hitter, he needs to be an all around great player. So let's look a little deeper into Betts.
Betts has moved from his second baseman throughout the minor league to become the starting CF fro the Red Sox last year. Now with the arrival of Jackie Bradley Jr Betts has moved to RF. This could be a tough move for some outfielders,especially at Fenway with the weird outfield. Betts has made one error in all of his 1,004 innings this year, ONE ERROR! This is absurd, just crazy. Betts doesn't just make the routine plays in the outfield. He makes every play in the outfield. He owns one of the best range factors in the AL with a 2.22, which is above the notoriously great defensive outfielder Billy Burns. Betts makes the routine plays, the ridiculous plays and everything in between.
Another asset needed to become the MVP is speed. Not only speed to track down balls hit in the outfield, which is evident in Betts through his Range Factor. But also speed in order to steal bases and eek out potential doubles and triples. Betts is sixth in the entire AL in stolen bases with players such as Rajai Davis( a speed guy) above him. Betts is the perfect 5-tool player. Evident by his power, speed, fielding, contact and arm.
Betts owns a .315 AVG only bested by Jose Altuve who could one day hit over .400.
The last factor that should be taken into account during the MVP voting is whether the player can bring their team to the playoffs or in the playoff picture. This is where Betts is separated from someone like Trout. Betts and the Red Sox currently hold a wild card spot while the Angels are one of the worst teams in the AL.
Final Thoughts: I can't find a single reason why Mookie Betts shouldn't be the MVP. His numbers surpass the other candidates. His team is winning because of him and he does everything at the highest level. But because of Mike Trouts stardom, he will most likely be the MVP. It's a shame.
PS: Jose Altuve even deserves to be MVP over Trout IMO.
(Stats by Baseball-Reference.com)
@belsner133