2023 MLB Awards: Top 5 AL MVP Award Candidates

Shohei Ohtani, Adley Rutschman, Kyle Tucker, Yandy Diaz and Corey Seager are all worthy candidates for the 2023 American League Most Valuable Player Award, but who will win?

Jack Vita | Oct 14, 2023

2023 MLB Awards: Top 5 AL MVP Award Candidates /

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Voting for Major League Baseball's most prestigious awards has already taken place.

Winners for MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year and Manager of the Year will be announced in November, upon the conclusion of the World Series.

As a part of our 2023 MLB award selections, here are our top five American League MVP Award candidates:

5) Adley Rutschman, C, Baltimore Orioles

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

Rutschman's Baltimore Orioles won an AL-best 101 games, the highest win total in a season for the franchise since 1979. The former No. 1 overall pick put together a phenomenal year in 2023, slashing .277/.374/.809 with 20 home runs; fantastic numbers for a catcher.

4) Kyle Tucker, OF, Houston Astros

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

Tucker came very close to a 30-30 season. At one point during the final Sunday of the season, the Houston Astros outfielder actually had a 30-30 season until Elias reversed course and his inside-the-park home run was once again ruled a triple. Tucker is petitioning the league for a 30-30 season, and though he probably will stay at 29-30, one fewer home run does not lessen the impact that he had on his team. The Astros won their sixth AL West division title in seven years.

3) Corey Seager, SS, Texas Rangers

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

Seager may have missed over 40 games this season due to injury, but in his 119 games, he was more valuable than just about anybody in the American League. The star slugger batted .327 with 33 home runs and 96 RBI, helping the Texas Rangers reach the postseason for the first time since 2016.

2) Yandy Diaz, 1B, Tampa Bay Rays

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

Taking home the silver, we have Yandy Diaz. He won the American League Batting Title, hitting .330 with a .410 OBP and .932 OPS. The Tampa Bay Rays won 99 games despite injuries to Shane McClanahan, Drew Rasmussen, Jeffrey Springs, Shane Baz and Brandon Lowe, and the midseason departure of Wander Franco. Diaz helped keep the Rays afloat, and in 2023, he was the second-best player in the American League.

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

There isn't much of a debate here. This fall, Ohtani could become baseball's sixth unanimous MVP since the turn of the new millennium. Ohtani once again dominated on both sides, logging a 3.14 ERA, while leading the league in home runs, with 44. The Japanese phenom will soon be awarded his second AL MVP.

Published Oct 14, 2023

JACK VITA

Jack Vita is a writer and contributor to Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies, 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.