Altuve, Stanton headline MLB Most Valuable Player Finalists

The Baseball Writers Association of America announced its finalists for Most Valuable Player on Monday. Major League Baseball home run leader and Miami Marlins’ outfielder Giancarlo Stanton, Arizona Diamondbacks’ star Paul Goldschmidt and Cincinnati Reds’ first baseman Joey Votto were nominated in the National League.

Major League Baseball’s Most Valuable Player nominees were announced earlier tonight with some marquee names headlining both the American and National League. Let’s begin with the candidates in the NL:

Giancarlo Stanton led the MLB in home runs (59) and RBIs (132) while setting a new career-high in hits (168) this season. The California native’s highest finish in MVP voting was second in 2014 — a year he also led the league in home runs. Stanton’s 298 votes is the highest finish by a Marlins’ player in MVP voting. Hanley Ramirez’s 233 votes in 2009 is second best.

A two-time second-place finisher for MVP, Paul Goldschmidt is now a finalist for the third time in his career. The Diamondbacks’ slugger tied a personal high in home runs (36) to complement 120 RBIs and a .297 batting average in 2017. The Texas State University product has been outvoted for the award by Pittsburgh’s Andrew McCutchen and Washington’s Bryce Harper. Similar to Stanton, Goldschmidt owns the best finish in Arizona’s franchise history.

Joey Votto, unlike the other nominees, has been named MVP in his career. The face of the Reds edged Albert Pujols in 2010, becoming Cincinnati’s first winner of the award since Barry Larkin in 1995. For an abysmal Reds’ team, the Canadian played 162 games and walked a league-high 134 times. Additionally, Votto batted .320 on the season, hit 36 home runs and drove in 100 RBIs.