Does Ohtani Injury Open MVP Race for Astros Slugger?
The injury to Los Angeles Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani is a blow for baseball in general. But, does it leave open some daylight in the American League MVP race?
Before Ohtani tore the UCL in his right elbow on Wednesday, he was considered a lock to win the award, between his pitching and his exceptional work at designated hitter. To review, as a pitcher he is 10-5 with a 3.14 ERA this season, with 167 strikeouts and 55 walks.
As a batter, he has slashed .304/.405/.664/1.069 with 44 home runs and 91 RBI. It is believed that Ohtani wants to continue to play as a designated hitter, despite the injury. If one doesn’t think that’s possible, well ask the Houston Astros, who watched Philadelphia Phillies slugger Bryce Harper do exactly that in last year’s World Series.
Even if Ohtani doesn’t play another game the rest of this season, he could still claim the AL MVP. But, if he can’t, which players could step into that void and take the award?
CBS Sports wrote that seven players have the potential goods to win the award, and one his Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker.
Per CBS:
The Astros could also take the AL West. Tucker has been hot this second half and leads the AL with 95 RBI. He's hitting .293/.372/.522 (143 OPS+) with 29 doubles, 25 homers and 24 steals. What if he stayed hot and got to, say, 40 homers with 135 RBI? Maybe he'd have a case. Of course, Ohtani already has 44 homers.
Tucker and the Astros were unable to agree to a contract extension this past offseason. Tucker has put together a season that should net him a better contract this coming offseason, though he remains under team control for two more seasons.
But, winning his first AL MVP award would certainly give team officials something to think about when it comes to extending Tucker this offseason.
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