Giancarlo Stanton of the Marlins and Jose Altuve of the Astros couldn't be more different in stature, but they both spent last season producing at elite levels en route to Major League Baseball's highest individual award.Stanton and Altuve were unveiled as the National League and American League Most Valuable Player Award winners, respectively, by the Baseball Writers' Association of America on Thursday.
It is the first MVP honor for both players.
Stanton, who is the first player in Marlins team history to be honored with the NL MVP Award, edged Joey Votto of the Reds by two points in the third closest in NL MVP balloting and the fourth overall. D-backs slugger Paul Goldschmidt finished in third place.Always a premier power threat, Stanton took his reputation to new heights in 2017. He hit 59 home runs, the most by any player in 16 years. Stanton led the Majors with 132 RBIs, a .631 slugging percentage and tied for first with 71 extra-base hits.
NL MVP Award voting
Giancarlo Stanton, MIA
|
10
|
10
|
5
|
3
|
1
|
302
|
Joey Votto, CIN
|
10
|
9
|
4
|
5
|
2
|
300
|
Paul Goldschmidt, ARI
|
4
|
5
|
4
|
9
|
5
|
239
|
Nolan Arenado, COL
|
2
|
3
|
8
|
11
|
4
|
229
|
Charlie Blackmon, COL
|
3
|
3
|
7
|
1
|
5
|
205
|
Name, team
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1st
|
2nd
|
3rd
|
4th
|
5th
|
Pts.
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The Marlins' right fielder finished in the top five in the big leagues in runs, total bases and OPS, while walking often (85 times) and socking 32 doubles. Stanton set career highs in nearly every offensive category while hitting .281/.376/.631 on the year.Stanton was dominant from a Statcast™ perspective as well, leading the National League in average exit velocity (91.9 mph), barrels (76), and placing second in average home run distance (min 30 HR).Buoyed by a midseason swing change, Stanton closed his stance in June and rode the adjustment to an avalanche of second-half success. He slugged .702 with 33 home runs after the All-Star break, including 18 in August, which tied the Major League record for the month set in 1937. His .349/.433/.899 slash line in August rivals the best by any player in any month, and Stanton's sizzling bat single-handedly kept Miami in the NL Wild Card hunt for a while. At one point, Stanton homered in six straight games.Stanton came close to winning the NL MVP Award once previously, when he placed second in 2014. But a season-ending facial injury cut his year short, ultimately hurting his candidacy.Altuve was the heartbeat -- and best player -- on the best team in baseball. He won his second consecutive batting title and third in four seasons, hitting .346 with an AL-best 204 hits. He became the first player in Major League history to lead his league in hits four consecutive seasons.
AL MVP Award voting
Jose Altuve, HOU
|
27
|
3
|
|
|
|
405
|
Aaron Judge, NYY
|
2
|
27
|
1
|
|
|
279
|
Jose Ramirez, CLE
|
1
|
|
22
|
6
|
|
237
|
Mike Trout, LAA
|
|
|
6
|
18
|
3
|
197
|
Francisco Lindor, CLE
|
|
|
|
4
|
12
|
143
|
Name, team
|
1st
|
2nd
|
3rd
|
4th
|
5th
|
Pts.
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By doing this, Altuve racked up records and laurels. He led the AL in multihit games and infield hits and led the Majors in games with at least three hits. He tied for second in runs (112), third in on-base percentage (.410), third in stolen bases, third in OPS (.957), fifth in total bases (323), sixth in slugging percentage (.547) and tied for ninth in doubles (39).Altuve also stole 32 bases, eclipsing the 30-steals mark for the sixth consecutive season. He matched a career-high with 23 home runs, drove in 81 runs and slashed .346/.410/.547, while ranking as one of baseball's top two players by bWAR (8.3) and fWAR (7.5).Altuve is the second player in Astros history to win the award, and the first since Jeff Bagwell in 1994, in the National League. He's the first second baseman to win the award in either league since Dustin Pedroia in 2008.Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who captured the AL Rookie of the Year Award on Monday, finished second in the AL MVP Award voting, while Indians third baseman Jose Ramirez wrapped up this breakout season with a third-place showing.
Joe Trezza /MLB.com
