A Stroll Through the List of MVP Candidates

With the All Star Game now just a memory we turn our collective thoughts to the second half of the season, the playoff race, and to a lesser but nonetheless interesting degree, the MVP Race.

Historically, the ATB MVP award has unofficially been limited to batters. This year is no different, but unlike the Cy Young award which is straightforward and presented to the best pitcher on the season, the MVP is given to the batter who is most "valuable" to his team.

Just like in MLB, the term "valuable" is not clearly defined. Owners vote for the MVP in our league, but as the sole voice of ATB, the commissioner does have the ability, even if minor, to steer owners in one direction vs another. Today, I will attempt to do just that!

Below are the current MVP candidates in each league. The criterion for inclusion in the following list is four fold:

1 - Great Rate stats
2 - Great counting stats
3 - Few other great offensive players on the same team
4 - Team in contention

The fourth criteria is the least important, but nonetheless a factor in my mind. While the MVP can and should be awarded to players on a bad team, players on a good team stand a better chance at winning the award.

Greenhorn Candidates
Barry Bonds (Black Diamonds)
.239 / .364 / .574, .938 OPS, 29 HR, 54 R, 71 RBI,

At this point in the season, Bonds might to be considered the front runner for the award in the Greenhorn division. He leads the league in home runs with 29 and is second in Slugging and RBI. The next best MVP candidate on the Black Diamonds is either Jim Gentile (16 HR, .804 OPS) or Fred Lynn (14 HR, .823 OPS). He has one critical flaw however, the left fielder is currently batting .239 and most owners will have a difficult time awarding the MVP to batters struggling to reach .250.

Tip O'Neill/Duke Snider (DC Chips)
.391 / .422 / .579, 1.001 OPS, 5 HR, 47 R, 43 RBI

The next two candidates hail from the DC Chips, which underscores their predicament immediately. Tip is the best batter in the league at this point coming in first in AVG, SLG, and OPS. On the downside, he has relatively poor (for MVP standards) counting stats with 47 Runs (22nd in league) and 43 RBI (25th). Perhaps worse still, O'Neill has serious competition for the award from his teammate, Duke Snider. A great defending center fielder, Snider is batting .322 / .382 / .533 with 13 HR, and 55 RBI.

Mickey Mantle (Helena Handbasket)
.315 / .368 .548, .917 OPS, 22 HR, 62 R, 78 RBI

Mantle combines the best aspects of Bonds and O'Neill into one nice bundle. Though rarely leading the league in any one category, Mantle is very good in almost all of them. He leads the league in RBI, is second in Runs Scored, and 3rd in HR's and Runs Created. He is also Top 10 in OPS and Slugging, while maintaining a very good Batting Average and On Base Percentage.

Joe DiMaggio (Eugene Psycho Llamas)
.361 / .402 / .552, .953 OPS, 16 HR, 47 R, 58 RBI

The final Greenhorn candidate is Joe DiMaggio. A superb center fielder, DiMaggio hits for a high average and gets on base at a prolific clip (5th in league) while still hitting for above average however. However, his R and RBI totals are a bit low and his team is 7 games under .500 and not currently in the playoff picture.

Darkhorse Candidates
Bobby Murcer (Potomac Rage)-.352 / .402 / .524, 13 HR, 68 R, 52 RBI
Lou Gehrig (Potomac Rage)-.305 / .420 / .570, 16 HR, 48 R, 52 RBI
Larry Doby (Boston's Terrier)-.310 / .370 / .550, 15 HR, 51 R, 37 RBI

Mossback Candidates
Ted Williams (Lusitania Death Speakers)
.288 / .411 / .456, .868 OPS, 14 HR, 51 R, 62 RBI

Williams has been on fire of late, vaulting his team to first place in the Mossback Division. He's third in the league in RBI and has the best on base percentage among the Mossback "power hitters". On the downside, his slugging is pedestrian for an MVP candidate and the Death Speaker's lineup is littered with great hitters.

Norm Cash (John McDonald Fanclub)
.304 / .392 / .471, .863 OPS, 14 HR, 53 R, 51 RBI

I am not convinced Cash is a viable candidate. He scores highly in the rudimentary calculation I used to filter out the candidates because a) his team is good, b) he has a good OBP, and c) his counting stats are well above average. Voters will have a difficult time coming to terms with the .863 OPS. Still, he is very good at almost everything, and a lot can be said for that.

Derrek Lee (San Diego Puff)
.300 / .360 / .534, .894 OPS, 16 HR, 54 R, 56 RBI

Despite learning a new position, second base, Lee's offense has been superb. He's 5th in the league in HRs and R, 8th in RBI, and 2nd in SLG, astounding feats when compared with other middle infielders. He has two issues to overcome with respect to voter tendencies - a low OBP and a great teammate in George Sisler (.366 .401 .522)

Jimmy Foxx (Downsouth Brews)
.292 / .394 / .594, .988 OPS, 27 HR, 55 R, 71 RBI

If ever there was a case for a player to be given the MVP award on a team sitting home in October, it's with Jimmy Foxx this season. The Brews have been struggling lately, and are now just a game above .500 after leading the division into late May. The slide has been no fault of the first basemen's however. Foxx leads the division in SLG, HR, RBI, OPS, RC, RC/27, and is 4th in Runs. He is also Top 10 in On Base and hitting close to .300.

Darkhorse Candidates
George Sisler (San Diego Puff) - .366 / .401 / .522, 6 HR, 33, 38 RBI
Nap Lajoie (PG Gargle Blasters)- .358 / .396 / .498, 5 HR, 54 R, 44 RBI
Alex Rodriguez (PG Gargle Blasters)-.276 / .368 / .487, 20 H R, 59 R, 61 RBI