(Photo by Kyle Rivas/Getty Images)
In the first few months of the 2023 MLB season, we were all captivated by Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. and his scintillating home run/stolen base pace.
Most of the baseball universe was saying that there was no way he lost the MVP award.
He was, at one point, on pace for a 40/80 season.
However, and despite the fact he has kept his batting average high, his power-speed pace has considerably slowed down.
It’s understandable, in fact, to some degree: it’s really hard to maintain those paces.
It all coincided with a long, productive hot streak by two Los Angeles Dodgers stars: Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman.
ESPN analyst and reporter Jeff Passan highlighted some stats and facts about all three players and concluded that Acuna is not a lock for the award anymore.
“Mookie Betts: .310/.405/.605, 34 HR, 89 RBI, 105 R, 7.0 fWAR, 6.9 rWAR. Ronald Acuña Jr.: .339/.419/.568, 28 HR, 74 RBI, 113 R, 6.2 fWAR, 6.4 rWAR. Freddie Freeman: .336/.412/.576, 23 HR, 85 RBI, 104 R, 6.2 fWAR, 5.5 rWAR. Safe to say, Acuña won’t run away with NL MVP anymore,” Passan tweeted.
Mookie Betts: .310/.405/.605, 34 HR, 89 RBI, 105 R, 7.0 fWAR, 6.9 rWAR
Ronald Acuña Jr.: .339/.419/.568, 28 HR, 74 RBI, 113 R, 6.2 fWAR, 6.4 rWAR
Freddie Freeman: .336/.412/.576, 23 HR, 85 RBI, 104 R, 6.2 fWAR, 5.5 rWAR
Safe to say, Acuña won’t run away with NL MVP anymore.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 25, 2023
All three players are deserving of the award stats-wise.
You can go ahead and add a fourth candidate: Acuna’s teammate Matt Olson.
He has 43 home runs, 108 RBI, and a .971 OPS this season.
We would say that all four have MVP chances.
Freeman won the NL MVP award in 2020, and Betts took home the AL edition in 2018.
For Acuna and Olson, it would be their first award.
There is a little over a month left in the regular-season calendar, so the one who can string together a dominant stretch to close out the campaign will likely win.
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