Albert Pujols is Having Another MVP Type Season

After what was for him a slow start to the season — meaning he wasn’t leading all offensive statistical categories from Opening Day onward — St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols is back in the form that has earned him three National League Most Valuable Player awards, including those of the last two years.  Perhaps his closest competitor in the MVP race is Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto. 

The final month of the regular season should be very exciting for fans of the Reds and Cardinals.  The two teams are battling for the National League Central Division Lead, while Pujols and Votto are battling for possible MVP honors.  This year, there is a third element.  Both Votto and Pujols have real shots at winning baseball’s Triple Crown, i.e. leading the league in batting average, home runs, and RBIs.

No one has won a Triple Crown in either league since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967.  Through games of August 25th, Pujols and Votto were first, second, or third in the National League in all three categories.  Votto was second in home runs and RBIs, trailing Pujols by two in each category; Pujols was third in batting average (.319) to league leader Votto’s .326.

In the American League, Detroit Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera is also having an MVP type of season, and also has an outside chance at the American League Triple Crown.  Cabrera leads the A.L. in RBIs and is second in home runs and batting average.  But he trails league leader Jose Bautista in home runs 40 to 31, and trails Josh Hamilton in batting average by 14 points, so his road to the Triple Crown is a little more difficult.  Between Albert Pujols, Joey Votto, and Miguel Cabrera, we have a very good chance of seeing baseball’s first Triple Crown in 43 years.

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