Who are five candidates for the American League MVP Award so far?

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May 2, 2017; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius (18) and right fielder Aaron Judge (99) celebrate in the seventh inning after scoring against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports /

We’ve taken a look at who could win the AL and NL Cy Young Awards. Now let’s turn our attention to the MVP race. Who are five candidates for the American League MVP as of right now?

Yes, the season is around 1/3 of the way done and it means we start to look at who are the frontrunners for some hardware once the season is over with. This time, it’s time to look at who are candidates for the American League MVP where we stand.

Last year, the top five in voting were Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Jose Altuve, Josh Donaldson and Manny Machado.

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There are so many injuries throughout the game that you won’t see a lot of the usual suspects. Donaldson and Miguel Cabrera have missed time with injuries this season. Machado has gotten off to a rough start. Altuve has been his usual excellent self, while Betts has rebounded.

There are also new names who have emerged, whether they are rookies or players who are just off to excellent starts this season. It just goes to show you that anyone can emerge at any time if they are in the right situation and get that confidence to do the job.

So who could take the award this year? Can anyone dethrone Trout for the award since he will miss the next two months with a thumb injury? Let’s take a look at five candidates for the American League MVP Award right now.

May 26, 2017; Miami, FL, USA; Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout (27) looks on prior to the game against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /

OF- Mike Trout

Yes, Trout is out for six to eight weeks with that thumb injury. You know what? It stinks. Trout was off to his best start ever, and even with the time he’s going to miss, he can still win the award.

Trout leads the AL in WAR, OBP, slugging, OPS, and OPS+. He’s still top 10 in runs, total bases, doubles, homers and RBI. The league average OPS+ is 100 and his is 224, more than double the average.

Trout is the only player ever to finish first or second in MVP voting in each of his first five seasons and there’s no reason to think that even with the time he misses he can’t end up right back there again because of the start he got off to.

His average season is .308 with 35 homers and 101 RBI with a .975 OPS.

As I spoke about earlier in the week, Trout’s production is far and away better than everyone on his team. With Trout, they were hanging around .500 even with all the other injuries they’ve had this season, Without him, it’s going to be a long season in Anaheim.

May 6, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) at bat during the seventh inning against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports /

OF- Aaron Judge

The cup of coffee that Aaron Judge got last season with the Yankees is one that you would immediately send back. Judge hit just .179 with 42 strikeouts in 95 plate appearances last year for the Yankees.

The former first round pick fought for the right field job during spring training. He won it and hasn’t looked back since. He’s performed so well that there is now a section of seating named the Judge’s Chambers in the right field stands.

Judge is second in WAR, OBP, slugging, OPS, and total bases, fifth in average, first in the majors with 18 homers, and third in RBI.

The Yankees haven’t had an exciting rookie like this in a very long time and he is a huge (literally and figuratively speaking) reason that the Yankees are in first place in the American League East and have the second most wins of any team in the American League.

May 20, 2017; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Rays designated hitter Corey Dickerson (10) hits a home run during the first inning against the New York Yankees at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

OF-Corey Dickerson

Before last season, the Tampa Bay Rays were looking for a little left-handed pop, so they dealt reliever Jake McGee to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for slugging outfielder Corey Dickerson. Last year was a bit of a disappointment, as Dickerson posted career lows in batting average and OPS, even though he tied his career high with 24 homers.

This year, the Rays installed him as their lead-off hitter and he has done nothing but ignite the offense as the Rays have continued to stay in the AL East division race all year long.

Dickerson is sixth in WAR, first in batting average at .342, ninth in OBP, fourth in slugging and OPS+, sixth in OPS, second in runs and doubles, first in hits and total bases.

If the Rays continue to stay in the race and Dickerson continues to tear the cover off the ball, he’s going to get consideration for the award this off-season.

In his age 28 season, maybe Dickerson has found something and will become one of the star slugging outfielders in the game today.

May 2, 2017; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Hicks (31) follows through on a home run against the Toronto Blue Jays in the first inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports /

OF- Aaron Hicks

No it’s not as crazy as you think it is. The Yankees acquired Hicks for catcher John Ryan Murphy last season and it didn’t work out so well. Injuries and inconsistent playing time hampered his season.

The former first round pick wasn’t able to beat out Aaron Judge for the starting right field spot, but Hicks has produced whenever called upon this year and has gotten significant playing time since Jacoby Ellsbury has been out with a concussion and may be out for a longer period of time. That’s okay, because Hicks has been up to the task.

Hicks is 10th in the American League in WAR, ninth in average, third in OBP, seventh in slugging and sixth in OPS.

Will Hicks keep this up? I’m not so sure, because we’ve never seen this out of him, so there’s really nothing to compare it to. The Yankees are off to some kind of start and it’s a lot of it is due to their production in the outfield.

May 27, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Astros starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel (60) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /

P-Dallas Keuchel

Two years ago, Keuchel won 20 games, led the league in innings and WHIP and won the American League Cy Young Award. The Houston Astros made the playoffs. Last season, Keuchel went 9-12, failed to throw over 200 innings and the Astros missed the playoffs.

This season? Keuchel has already equaled his win total from last season and the Astros have the best record in the sport.

Coincidence? I don’t think so.

Keuchel leads the league in wins with nine and has an ERA at 1.67. Keuchel is fourth among all players in WAR. He’s second in WHIP and ERA+, fourth in innings and FIP and ninth in strikeouts.

Keuchel will lose a game or two at some point, however, he’s brought himself back to his ace status from two seasons ago.

Next: Are the Yankees rushing Torres?

There are plenty of other players who are having great seasons. Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, Miguel Sano, Ervin Santana, Brett Gardner and Yonder Alonso come to mind. In two months, this list could be totally different, but for right now these are some of the names that are establishing themselves as prime contenders for the award. The race for American League MVP will certainly heat up all summer long, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Trout wins it again, even after missing two months.

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