MLB MVP candidates

Altuve won the AL MVP in 2017 but was plagued by a knee injury last season. Still, he has won the Silver Slugger in five consecutive seasons and has three batting titles on his resume. If healthy, he'll be in the running for another MVP.

Arenado recently signed a seven-year extension with the Rockies, great news for Colorado fans. He finished third in the NL MVP voting last year, his best result to date, and has led the league in home runs in three of the past four seasons. Arenado has won a Gold Glove at third base in each of his six seasons in the majors.

Betts declined in 2017 after finishing second in the MVP voting in 2016, but he bounced back to win the award last year. He hit 32 HRs and stole 30 bases in 2018, his first 30-30 season. At 26, he's entering his prime. .

Baez is coming off a breakout campaign (.290, 34 HRs, 111 RBI), which earned him second in the NL MVP voting. The 26-year-old is entering his prime. 

Houston is getting quite a return on the second overall pick of the 2015 draft. Bregman made his first All-Star appearance last year and hit .286-31-103 with a .926 OPS for the season. His 51 doubles led the league.

Bryant would like to forget  2018 -- he missed much of the season because of a shoulder injury. The 27-year-old won the NL MVP in 2016 and is highly capable of getting back to that level if he's healthy.

Correa has been plagued by injuries during his four-year career. When healthy, he has been productive. In 2017, he hit .315 with 24 HRs and 84 RBI in only 109 games. He drove in a career-high 96 runs in 2016.

Freeman, who finished a career-best fourth in the NL MVP voting last season, is the top veteran on a young Braves team. He has only one 30-HR season, but the nine-year vet is one of the league's top hitters. 

Davis is one of the league's premier power bats. In 2018, he led the AL with 48 home runs, giving him a streak of three straight seasons with at least 42 HRs. He peaked at eighth in the MVP voting last season. Primarily a DH, he could be a long shot for the award.

Goldschmidt enters a walk year after getting traded from Arizona to St. Louis. There's pressure on him to help the Cardinals return to the playoffs after a three-year hiatus. With three top-three MVP finishes, he is highly capable of earning the award.

Judge won AL Rookie of the Year and finished second in the MVP voting in 2017. He was sidelined part of last season with a fractured wrist and did not earn MVP consideration. He has quickly become one of the game's top hitters (.963 OPS over two-plus seasons). Judge has an excellent supporting cast.

Harper, who recently signed a $330 million contract with Philadelphia, is the NL favorite to win his second MVP Award. He should be helped by the small confines at Citizens Bank Park, but the pressure will be on after getting a huge payday.

Lindor, who has made three consecutive All-Star Game appearances, is plagued with a calf injury that could put his Opening Day availability in jeopardy. He will be even more important this year for a Cleveland team that lost Michael Brantley and Yan Gomes in the offseason.

Hoskins has 52 home runs in only 203 MLB games, and he's set to move back to his natural position of first base after struggling in the outfield last year. Likely to protect Bryce Harper in the Phils lineup, Hoskins could produce huge RBI numbers.

Year 1 of Martinez's five-year, $110 million contract was terrific for Boston, as he competed for the Triple Crown after hitting .330-43-130; he finished fourth in the AL MVP vote. That will be tough to repeat, but he has hit more than 40 home runs in each of the past two seasons.

Machado recently signed a 10-year, $300 million contract with the Padres and is set to start at third base. He has hit at least 33 home runs in four consecutive seasons and has a wealth of young talent around him in San Diego.

Although he made a second straight All-Star Game appearance, Springer is coming off a somewhat disappointing 2018. He won the Silver Slugger in 2017 after hitting .283-34-85 with an .889 OPS. He is likely to hit leadoff again for the Astros.

With Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy gone, Rendon is the most proven hitter in the Nationals lineup. He has hit at least 20 home runs in four of the past five seasons; he's also hit above .300 in the past two seasons. His best finish in the MVP voting was fifth in 2014.

The 2017 NL MVP winner with a mammoth .281-59-132 season in Miami, Stanton was a relative disappointment after hitting "just" .266-38-100 for the Yankees last year. At age 29, Stanton is capable of another MVP; playing in hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium helps.

Rizzo has been one of baseball's most consistent offensive performers, with an OPS from .846 to .928 in each of the past five seasons. He remains in his prime at age 29 and has finished fourth in the MVP voting twice.

The consensus best player in baseball, Trout has won two MVP Awards and finished top four in the voting in each of the past seven seasons. He reportedly is finalizing a 12-year, $430 million deal, the largest contract in professional sports history. Trout led the AL in OPS during three of the last four years and is unsurprisingly the favorite to win the AL MVP this year. 

Suarez has shown steady offensive growth during his career and is coming off a career year (.283-34-104). The Reds have added significant talent this offseason, and Suarez could be a dark-horse MVP candidate if the team plays as the front office expects.

The diminutive Ramirez has become an elite power hitter, launching 39 home runs last year and posting an OPS well above .900 for the second straight year. He was also a 30/30 man for the first time and finished third in the AL MVP voting for the second straight year.

The reigning NL MVP, Yelich hit .326-36-110 last year in his first season with the Brewers. He led the league in batting average and slugging and also grades well defensively. Milwaukee's expectations are high this year after adding Yasmani Grandal and re-signing Mike Moustakas.