MLB Betting – National League MVP Futures
Year after year the NL MVP Award is hotly contested, and last season was no different as the award was eventually bestowed upon Ryan Braun. And deserving or not, Braun will be right back in the thick of things this season since his suspension was lifted.
Nevertheless, there will likely be some new faces in the race this season as two of the top five finalists from a season ago–Albert Pujols and Price Fielder–have now moved to the American League
Along with Braun though will likely be 2011 runner up, Dodger outfielder Matt Kemp, who if he can remain healthy, has to figure to be right there again.
Ryan Braun
The winner from a season ago will be a player again. It’s possible that his numbers do suffer with the departure of Prince Fielder though. Teams will be able to pitch around Braun more, and that could dent his RBI and home run totals. Don’t expect it to hurt him enough to not be a contender though.
He still has the pop, can run with the best of them, and gets on base with regularity. But can the voters get over the scandal? We’ll see.
Matt Kemp
Kemp is the guy that many thought should have won the award a season ago, if you stick with the true notion of MVP (emphasis on valuable). Without Kemp, the Dodgers would have been beyond awful last season. He had a line of .324/39/126/.399, and finished just .008 percentage point shy of the NL’s triple crown.
Will he be able to repeat those numbers? Not likely, but he will still be a more than capable player, and will be a force in this race.
Troy Tulowitzki
A healthy Troy Tulowitzki is a scary thing for the National League. His numbers just don’t happen that often from the shortstop position. [dfads params=’groups=10&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]
With a line of .302/30/105/.372 he was clearly the best at his position in the NL last season, and probably all of baseball. What makes him so rare is that he just does not strike out as much as your typical power hitter. At Coors Field, he is capable of astronomical numbers.
Joey Votto
The winner of the 2010 version of this award started off last season in a horrible way, but still managed to eventually right the ship. Finishing with a .309/29/103/.416 slashline.
If he is able to avoid that slow start, just imagine what this guy is capable of within the friendly confines of Great American Ball Park. What’s crazy is that he hits even better on the road, so don’t think that he is a product of where he plays. This guy can do it all.
Justin Upton
At just 24 years of age, Upton is already putting himself in some pretty amazing company. You don’t have to go back all that far to see that his stats at the age of 21 rivaled even that of a more experienced Albert Pujols and Alex Rodriguez. Last season his average dipped a bit, but the other totals were still there in a fury.
With a slashline of .289/31/88/.369, his numbers are incredibly good for someone that was just 23. When you factor in his running ability, it only gets better.
There is no doubt that he will win one of these eventually. It is just a matter of time.
Odds to win the 2012 NL MVP
Joey Votto 7/1
Ryan Braun 8/1
Matt Kemp 9/1
Justin Upton 10/1
Giancarlo Stanton 10/1
Troy Tulowitzki 12/1
Jose Reyes 15/1
Starlin Castro 20/1
Matt Holliday 20/1
Ryan Zimmerman 20/1
Hunter Pence 25/1
Buster Posey 25/1
Hanley Ramirez 25/1
Clayton Kershaw 25/1
Jay Bruce 25/1
Carlos Gonzalez 30/1
David Wright 30/1
Roy Halladay 30/1
Brian McCann 30/1
Carlos Quentin 35/1
Tim Lincecum 35/1
David Freese 35/1
Cliff Lee 35/1
Andrew McCutchen 35/1
Cole Hamels 40/1
Rickie Weeks 40/1
Lance Berkman 40/1
Shane Victorino 40/1
Mike Morse 50/1
Stephen Strasburg 50/1
Aramis Ramirez 50/1
Johan Santana 75/1
