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Dodgers: Who Should be the Dodgers Team MVP?
The MLB announced that Giancarlo Stanton was the 2017 NL MVP Award winner this afternoon. Unfortunately, this is the one award that the Dodgers did not have a finalist on the board. So I decided to look into, who is the Dodgers team MVP.
A big reason why the Dodgers don’t have a finalist in the final 3 is that this team is your definition of a TEAM. We saw throughout the season that it wasn’t just one player carrying the load to help the Dodgers win 104 games. Instead, it was a collective group of guys that stepped up in various moments.
The Dodgers had five players finish in the top 22 in voting by the BBWAA. Corey Seager, Clayton Kershaw, Kenley Jansen, Cody Bellinger, and Justin Turner each received votes for NL MVP. Turner earned the most points with 43, edging out Bellinger’s 38 points to finish 8th in the voting. But that shouldn’t take away from their performances this season because it’s not their fault this team’s success was built on everyone doing their part.
Throughout the season we saw moment after moment every man on the roster do their part to give this team their 5th consecutive division title. We saw Justin Turner lead the league in hitting for about a third of the season, and a rookie who was not on the opening day roster set the National League home run record in just 132 games. Up and down the lineup there were big contributors to the Dodgers successful season.
But who was the stand out of the bunch?
There are several viable candidates. From Chris Taylor surprisingly stellar season, to the reinvention of Yasiel Puig. Let’s pitch the case for each of these viable options.
Chris Taylor came into spring training without a roster spot. Through the dog days of March, he was battling with Kike Hernandez for the utility spot on the Dodgers roster. Kike ultimately won the battle because of his versatility on the defensive side, particularly with his experience in the outfield. Taylor had never played the outfield coming into this season.
Well, a few injuries later a spot opened up for Taylor to prove himself in the outfield. And boy did he deliver. Taylor slashed an impressive .288/.354/.496 with 21 home runs and 17 stolen bases while taking over the starting centerfield job.
Taylor posted an impressive 4.7 WAR in his first full season as a big leaguer. He was the spark plug to the Dodgers lineup becoming the leadoff man the Dodgers desperately needed once Andrew Toles went down.
Taylor’s season came out of nowhere. He wasn’t supposed to be a big part of the team this season. But little did Dodger fans know, he became one of the most critical pieces of the team. He brought stability to the outfield patrolling centerfield, and also was crucial to the lineup’s success with the power-speed combination to start a game. Taylor is a very strong candidate for team MVP.
Justin Turner was never viewed as an All-Star caliber player until he found stability with the Dodgers. Now he’s the epitome of what Dave Roberts ask for from his players, and has a big impact on the younger players.
Turner had a great season, but a fantastic first half. Turner finished the season with a slash rate of .322/.415/.530 and was among the league leaders in each of those categories. In the first half, he was leading the league in hitting with a .377 average and had an OBP of .473.
His home run totals were a bit down from last season when he hit 27, but he was still able to crack 21. His RBI numbers were also down from last season with 71 this season, but that has to do with a hamstring injury that made him miss about a month of the season. Despite the low RBI total, he was still responsible for over 140 of the team’s runs (72 runs scored, 71 RBI).
Outside of the offensive aspect of the game, Turner played a spectacular third base. He had a fielding percentage of .969 and showed that he’s becoming one of the better defenders at the hot corner. I thought he should have been considered for a Gold Glove this offseason, but missing over a month of the season may have hurt his case.
Turner proved to Dodger fans that he wanted to return to LA by re-signing with the Dodgers the last off-season. Now the Dodger fan base can rest assured they have their third baseman and number 3 hitter for the next three seasons. This was a great season for J.T., but I would like to see the power numbers increase next year.
We asked you all on Twitter who you thought was the team MVP and Justin Turner won the fan vote by a narrow margin.
Who would you vote for as the #Dodgers team MVP?
— Cesar Becerra (@cebass_LA) November 16, 2017
Say what you will about Yasiel Puig, but he was born to play under the Hollywood spotlight. His unique style of play undoubtedly keeps fans on edge and adds another aspect of entertainment to the game. Say what you will about his “hot dog” style of play, but you can’t deny the fact that this man is talented.
Puig had his most complete season of his career this year. The past two seasons, Dodger fans have been beating a dead horse about how he’ll never get back being the same player he was when he first came into the league in 2013.
Well, all that was put to rest this season. Yasiel Puig set a career high in home runs (28), RBI (74), stolen bases (15), walk rate (11.2%), and strikeout rate (17.5%). With the help of Turner Ward, Puig turned his game around and was arguably the Dodgers best hitter throughout the season. He did all this by constantly being moved up and down the lineup.
Along with his much-improved offense, Puig continued to play spectacular defense in right field. Puig was a finalist for a Gold Glove for the first time in his career but fell short to Jason Heyward. Puig has the best arm in baseball and has incredible speed for his stature.
Puig only ranked 5th on the positional players in WAR with a 2.9 rating, but that has to do with his struggles on the bases. I was very impressed with Puig this season and know Puig will continue to improve his game this offseason, so I expect him to work on running the bases a little more.
Puig was a huge unexpected contributor to the Dodgers lineup this season. Fans, the front office, and Dave Roberts all knew what Puig was capable of; it just wasn’t expected this season. Next season Puig has a different narrative to followup. He’ll no longer have to prove doubters wrong, but instead prove supporters right.
Cody Bellinger took Los Angeles by storm at the end of April. There was a lot of hype about his potential September call-up, and Dodger fans were excited from his first at-bats at Camelback Ranch.
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In what turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the Dodgers, Bellinger was called up on April 25th because of several injuries to the outfield. Bellinger lit a fire in the Dodgers offense and the team never looked back going on impressive streaks of winning 43 of 50 games in June and July. Since Bellinger’s arrival, the Dodgers went on to have the best record in baseball and clinched home-field advantage throughout the postseason.
Bellinger was the second consecutive unanimous Rookie of the Year for the Dodgers and did so by breaking the NL rookie home run record with 39 belibombs. He ended the season leading the Dodgers in home runs (39), RBI (97), runs (87), ISO (.315), and SLUG (.581). He was the most crucial part of the Dodgers run producing.
Outside of his offensive run production, Bellinger played all over the field for the Dodgers. He started his MLB tenure in left field when the Dodgers had some outfield injuries. He took over at first base when Adrian Gonzalez went on the DL for an extended period, and seemingly was never out of the lineup outside of a short DL stint in August. Bellinger played quality defense in the outfield and at first base, proving to be one of the game’s real 5-tool players.
Bellinger is my vote for the Dodgers MVP because he was so crucial to the team’s success. When you factor in that his impact wasn’t expected this season, it only adds to the narrative. Coming into the season we all knew who Bellinger was, the Dodgers top prospect. Fans had hoped to get a glimpse of him in Dodger blue this season. They couldn’t have asked for this type of production.
Next: Joc Pederson 2017 Season Grade
At only 22-years old, the sky is the limit for Bellinger. Congrats on a fantastic rookie season, Bellinger! Believe me when I tell you, the city of LA is expecting big things from you.