Memorial Day has past, and May has come to an end. With team’s creeping towards the 55-game mark, what does the AL MVP race look like?
*All stats as of May 29, 2019. All AL ranks unless said otherwise.
Last month‘s American League MVP race took shape with Matt Chapman, the Oakland Athletics Platinum Glove fielding third baseman, leading the charge.
Mike Trout, an MVP candidate lock every season, was second. Behind him was the more contact-focused version of Joey Gallo. Eddie Rosario and Austin Meadows took the final two spots in that order.
This month’s update features only two players from that list. Others have either cooled off, or players have simply outplayed them.
So far, the National League MVP race has been the most talked about. Having Christian Yelich and Cody Bellinger both performing at an extremely high level helps.
The American League has been top-heavy in 2019. Each division leader has 35 or more wins, and the Minnesota Twins lead the Central by 9.5 games and the Astros hold the West at 7.5 games.
Five other teams are playing .500 baseball or better, and the Yankees only have a 1.5 game lead on the Tampa Bay Rays in the East.
But who in the American League has been roping the ball and playing like an MVP?