Inside the Astros

MLB Awards: Houston Astros Star Listed as Top-5 AL MVP Candidate

Houston Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker has never placed higher than 15th in AL MVP voting. Tucker is listed as a top-5 AL MVP candidate on Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies.

Jack Vita

MLB Awards: Houston Astros Star Listed as Top-5 AL MVP Candidate
MLB Awards: Houston Astros Star Listed as Top-5 AL MVP Candidate /
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Houston Astros right fielder Kyle Tucker has never placed higher than 15th in MVP voting... until now. Tucker was recently listed as a top-5 AL MVP candidate on Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies. 

Tucker, 26, was selected by the Astros with the fifth overall pick in the 2015 MLB Draft and made his Major League debut in 2018.

In 2023, the outfielder enjoyed what may have been his finest professional season. Tucker slashed .284/.369/.886 and nearly posted a 30-30 season, tallying 29 home runs and 30 stolen bases, while driving 112 RBI over 157 games.

But was that enough to earn him the MVP?

Only two Houston players have ever won this award.

Jose Altuve won it in 2017, and back when the Astros were in the National League, Jeff Bagwell was named MVP in the lockout-shortened 1994 season.

Tucker came in fourth on our top-5 candidates list.

Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager, Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz and Los Angeles Angels pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani finished in front of him. Rounding out the list is Baltimore Orioles' star catcher Adley Rutschman.

Here is a look at the top-5 list, with key statistics included:

5) Adley Rutschman, C, Baltimore Orioles

154 G, .277/.374/.809, 20 HR, 80 RBI, 1 SB, 128 OPS+, 4.3 WAR

4) Kyle Tucker, OF, Houston Astros

157 G, .284/.369/.886, 29 HR, 112 RBI, 30 SB, 142 OPS+, 5.4 WAR

3) Corey Seager, SS, Texas Rangers

119 G, .327/.390/1.013, 33 HR, 96 RBI, 2 SB, 170 OPS+, 6.9 WAR

2) Yandy Diaz, 1B, Tampa Bay Rays

137 G, .330/.410/.932, 22 HR, 78 RBI, 0 SB, 158 OPS+, 5.2 WAR

1) Shohei Ohtani, SP and DH, Los Angeles Angels

135 G, .304/.412/1.066, 44 HR, 95 RBI, 20 SB, 184 OPS+, 10.0 WAR

23 G, 23 GS, 10-5, 3.14 ERA, 132.0 IP, 142 ERA+, 4.00 FIP, 1.061 WHIP, 11.4 SO9, 3.04 SO/W

The 2023 AL MVP Award winner will be announced sometime after the World Series wraps up in November. Ohtani is expected to win the award for the second time in three years.

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Jack Vita
JACK VITA

Jack Vita is a writer and contributor to Sports Illustrated's Inside the Astros, and host of the Jack Vita Show, a popular sports podcast available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and wherever podcasts are found. Jack is a 2017 graduate of Valparaiso University, in northwest Indiana. Since completing his degree, Jack has created his own independent sports media outlet (JackVita.com) and podcast (the Jack Vita Show). He has featured prominent guests from the worlds of sports and entertainment including Brian Urlacher, Scot Pollard, Bob Nightengale, Dan O'Dowd, and Survivor icons Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, Cirie Fields, Danni Boatwright and "the Dragon Slayer", Coach Benjamin Wade. While studying at Valparaiso, Jack was the school newspaper's beat writer for the Valpo Crusaders men's basketball team, which won three straight Horizon League championships from 2015-2017. Traveling to cover the team, Jack had a front row seat to one of the nation's best mid-major teams, headlined by future NBA Draft pick Alec Peters and coached by NCAA Tournament hero Bryce Drew. Jack hosted a weekly sports radio show and provided play-by-play and color commentary services for ESPN 3 and the university's student radio station, WVUR-FM, 95.1 The Source, covering Valparaiso men's soccer, women's basketball, softball and volleyball. Jack also covered these sports, in addition to men's and women's tennis, baseball and women's soccer for the school newspaper, The Torch. While he was in college, Jack interned for and co-hosted Jewell On Sports, a sports radio program on AM 1050 WLIP in Kenosha, Wisconsin. There, he interviewed various pro athletes such as Ahman Green, Javon Walker and Javier Arenas, in addition to talking sports with the late, great Brad Jewell. Jack also interned for 22nd Century Media, a now defunct newspaper corporation that provided news to the North Shore of Chicago. With 22nd Century Media, Jack wrote post-game recaps, feature stories about local athletes, reviews of local restaurants and compiled the newspaper's "Pet of the Week" and "Athlete of the Week" sections, while providing copy-editing services. Before attending Valparaiso, Jack enrolled at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he studied for two years before transferring. He is a high school graduate of New Trier Township High School in Winnetka, Illinois. You can follow Jack on Twitter @JackVitaShow, subscribe to his podcast, the Jack Vita Show, wherever podcasts are found, and reach him via email at jack@jackvita.com.

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