MLB: Top NL MVP Candidates of the First Half

In 2015 Bryce Harper lit the league on fire on his way to his first career MVP Award. In 2016 he hasn’t been as good (nearly impossible to do), and he’s arguably not even been the best hitter on his team. Despite his struggles this season, I think it’s entirely unfair to not include the player that still holds the crown as best hitter in the National League in an MVP candidacy list.

Bryce Harper can still very much compete for the NL MVP in the second half of the season. No single player has separated himself from the pack, and Harper has managed to still have a very well above average season. When Bryce Harper slumps, he is an All-Star outfielder and better than almost every player in the league. Another note about Bryce Harper slumps: they probably won’t last very long.

For all of those reasons I have included Harper in the list. He’s hitting .259/.401/.497 with 19 home runs and 52 RBI. A common strategy to combat his incredible hitting has been pitching around, which has led to his very high walk rate (19.0%). Because his walk rate is so high, he is one of very few players that can say they walk more than they strike out (his strikeout rate is 15.9%).

His advanced metrics show that he’s not only having an already good season, but also that he will probably come out of his slump. His ISO is .238 with a .372 wOBA and 131 wRC+.

Harper hasn’t distanced himself from the pack like he did early in the season last year, and in some ways he is lagging behind the group in 2016. His relative struggles to his 2015 season shouldn’t last long, and I have no doubt that he will make his presence known in the MVP discussion during the second half of the season.

Next: Another Nationals Star