Halfway through the MLB season there have been some impressive individual performances from some of the stars in the league. These players should be seen as the top candidates to win the MVP. There are some clear favorites at this point who are leading the MLB in various major hitting categories. Let’s take a look at these players and who could potentially make a run at the award in the second half of the season.
American League
The MVP race in the American League looks like the award may already be set. Aaron Judge is having one of the best seasons that we have seen in a long time. He is leading the majors in total RBIs, runs, hits, and home runs. With those numbers and the Yankees having the best record in the MLB, it seems clear that Judge should be the easy vote to win the MVP in the American League.
Shohei Ohtani was the early favorite to win the award but has recently been clearly passed up by Judge. He won the award last year in the AL but his numbers are down a bit so far this year. If he can get back on the pace he was last year it could be a closer race as we come down to the last couple of months of the season.
National League
The National League MVP race is a little closer at this point compared to the one in the American League. The clear favorite at this point seems to be Paul Goldschmidt who is enjoying his best season ever in the majors in his 12th season. While Judge leads the league in RBIs, runs, hits, and home runs, Goldschmidt is holding some impressive stat categories himself. He leads the MLB in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and OPS. There is no doubt at this point that Goldschmidt should be the top MVP candidate in the NL based on those numbers.
The newest star in Los Angeles is a player who could challenge him for the award come the end of the year. Freddie Freeman has been leading this Dodgers team to the best record in the National League so far. He is doing so while hitting .321 and is getting to the plate the most times in the league. It will be hard to catch Goldschmidt, but Freeman has been great so far this year and if he adds a bit more power in the second half of the year, it could boost his MVP candidacy.
