Royce Lewis is not just a one-time dark horse candidate to be the American League MVP in 2024, he's officially a two-time dark horse candidate after MLB Network's Sean Casey put him on a pedestal as teams reported to spring training Wednesday.
"I'm going off the board, Royce Lewis," Casey began during a conversation about AL MVP candidates. "Royce Lewis for me. He got 58 games last year, I think he hit 15 bombs, 52 RBIs, hit over .300. If this guy can stay healthy, this might not be a long shot, actually."
According to FanDuel Sportsbook, Lewis carries 5,000-to-1 odds to win the award. In other words, a winning bet would pay out 5,000 times the amount wagered.
What's somewhat shocking is that only 17 players have better MVP odds than Lewis.
- Aaron Judge, +550
- Juan Sota, +600
- Corey Seager, +850
- Yordan Alvarez, +950
- Julio Rodriguez, +1200
- Kyle Tucker, +1500
- Bobby Witt Jr., +2000
- Gunnar Henderson, +2000
- Mike Trout, +2000
- Rafael Devers, +2200
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr., +2200
- Marcus Semien, +2200
- Jose Ramirez, +2200
- Bo Bichette, +2500
- Adley Rutschman, +2500
- Jose Altuve, +3500
- Yandy Diaz, +4000
Lewis's odds are better than teammate Carlos Correa (+8000). The only other member of the Twins available on FanDuel is starting pitcher Pablo Lopez at +20000.
Lewis dominated in limited action last season. The former No. 1 overall pick's 162-game averages based on his 70 career games are amazing: .307/.364/.549 (.913 OPS) with 39 homers, 132 RBIs, 95 runs.
"Royce Lewis, if this guy can get 140 games and stay healthy you might see some big numbers and he might be in the conversation," Casey said, noting that Lewis's 162-game average WAR (his value over a replacement player) is 6.5.
The only position players with a WAR of 6.5 or better last season were Mookie Betts (8.3), Ronald Acuna (8.2), Matt Olson (7.4), Marcus Semien (7.4), Corey Seager (6.9) and Freddie Freeman (6.5). Shohei Ohtani had a 6.0 WAR as a position player with 4.0 more as a pitcher to for a total WAR of 10.0, which led the majors.
Lewis and the Twins are projected to win the AL Central behind a deep batting order, solid starting pitching and one of baseball's best bullpens. Pitchers and catchers reported to spring camp in Fort Myers, Fla. on Wednesday and position players get started Feb. 18.
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