Early picks for MVP?

[looptid]

What about Santana? After getting hit hard by Texas five starts ago, pitching coach Rick Anderson noticed Santana's delivery was off, and that he wasn't standing up as tall or as straight as he was last season, which he and Santana corrected immediately. The results:

Last Four Starts (31 IP)
2.03 ERA
0.64 WHIP
12.19 K/9
10.50 K/BB

That's nuts. The last three stats listed are just plain silly. I'd watch out for another crazy run.

[bselig]

Teixeira is not winning mvp this season

1) Arod
2) Tejada

1) Abreu
2) Pujols

[SaintsOfTheDiamond]

What about Santana? After getting hit hard by Texas five starts ago, pitching coach Rick Anderson noticed Santana's delivery was off, and that he wasn't standing up as tall or as straight as he was last season, which he and Santana corrected immediately. The results:

Last Four Starts (31 IP)
2.03 ERA
0.64 WHIP
12.19 K/9
10.50 K/BB

That's nuts. The last three stats listed are just plain silly. I'd watch out for another crazy run.

While I think he deserves to be in the conversation, if he didn't win it last year he's not gonig to win it if you ask me.

As of today, Lee and A-Rod would be my choices.

[davus]

How is everybody putting Tejada on top? A-Rod has more runs, more Rbi's more HR's, 5x the sb's and a better OPS.

A-Rod is easily in the lead for this prize.

[Drunken Rhino]

Because Tejada's team in 6 games ahead of A-rods. And he's not far enough behind statistically to say A-Rod's #'s are that much better.

Because Tejada is heads and shoulders better than the next best SS whereas A-Rod is not so far ahead of the next 3B.

That's why.

[linberg]

Can the Cubs win without Lee - no. Can the Cards win without Pujols - definitely. Hence why Steve Nash and not Shaq was the basketball MVP. If the Cubs make it to the playoffs, I think Lee is the MVP. If they don't, I agree they're looking for reasons to give it to Pujols.

[Drunken Rhino]

If Abreu goes 40/40, he's the MVP over Pujols & Lee.

[RugbyD]

Most of you are confusing 'best player' with 'MVP'. There is a very strong possibility that they can be the same person, but the definitions of each term are different. MVP means "who is the best player that is most important to his team". Essentially, make a list of the top players and take him out of his team's lineup and see which team becomes the worst.

In 1987, Andre Dawson won the MVP and was on the last place Cubs. This stat line was not be the best in the NL at that time:

90-49-137-11-.287-.896

full voting record: http://www.baseballreference.com/awards/awards_1987.shtml#NLmvp

One could easily make an arguement for others players who had better overall numbers and played on much more successful teams. However, take Dawson out of the Cubs lineup and they get hurt the most. I think the same could be said for Derrek Lee this year. Everyone else on the Cubs has had a fairly up-and-down year and that team could not have survived at all without Lee in the lineup. St. Louis is still an very good team without Pujols, and Philly is almost serviceable without Abreu.

Lee is the clear winner at this point in the season.

[linberg]

exactly.

[tvv44]

My darkhorse for AL MVP this year is Johnny Damon.

Darkhorse for NL MVP is Jeff Kent, but it's almost for sure that either Pujols or Lee will win...baring injury