The current MVP Award favorites are …

The outcomes from the second MLB.com MVP Award ballot of the 2023 season are in, and whereas the leaders from our first ballot held regular, one of many races seems to be a lot nearer than the opposite.

With 47 MLB.com voters taking part, National League chief Ronald Acuña Jr. obtained 42 of the first-place votes within the NL. That was a stark distinction to the American League facet of the ballot, as 5 AL gamers earned a first-place vote, led by Shohei Ohtani with 23.

Once once more, voters have been requested to rank their high 5 AL and NL MVP candidates primarily based on what has occurred to this point and what they anticipate will occur within the months to come back. Players obtained vote factors on a 5-4-3-2-1 scale — 5 factors for a first-place vote, 4 factors for a second-place vote and so forth.

Here are the complete outcomes. (All stats beneath are by Sunday.)

1) Shohei Ohtani, SP/DH, Angels (23 first-place votes)
After receiving practically 70% of the first-place votes in our first MVP ballot of 2023, Ohtani misplaced some help this time, possible as a result of he hasn’t been as sharp on the mound not too long ago. Ohtani nonetheless has a 3.32 ERA on the yr with 102 Ok’s in 76 innings, however he has posted a 4.88 ERA and a 5.15 FIP in his previous eight begins. Of course, pitching is simply a part of the two-way celebrity’s sport, and he’s greater than made up for any struggles on the mound by producing 10 homers, 20 RBIs and a 1.010 OPS over his previous 26 video games, serving to the Angels keep within the thick of the AL Wild Card race.

2) Aaron Judge, OF, Yankees (12 first-place votes)
Although he’s on the injured checklist after hurting his toe operating by a wall to make an unbelievable catch at Dodger Stadium on June 3, the reigning AL MVP however moved as much as second in our newest ballot after ending exterior the highest 5 within the first MLB.com MVP ballot of 2023. Prior to occurring the IL, Judge recorded 13 homers, 24 RBIs and an eye-popping 1.454 OPS in his earlier 19 video games.

3) Wander Franco, SS, Rays (8 first-place votes)
The Rays have MLB’s greatest document at 48-20, and Franco leads the membership in hits (75), doubles (19), steals (22) and complete bases (122) whereas slashing .299/.360/.486. Add in his wonderful protection at shortstop, and the 22-year-old has produced extra wins above alternative (3.8) than anybody else, together with Ohtani.

4) Marcus Semien, 2B, Rangers (3 first-place votes)
The Rangers are considered one of this yr’s most stunning groups, going 41-23 with the highest-scoring offense (6.25 runs per sport) in MLB. Semien, who completed third within the AL MVP race with the A’s in 2019 and the Blue Jays in ’21, has been a sparkplug for Texas out of the leadoff spot, hitting .296 with 9 homers, 51 RBIs, 57 runs scored and an .848 OPS. Also a stellar defender, Semien is tied with Toronto’s Bo Bichette for third within the AL with 3.2 bWAR.

5) Bo Bichette, SS, Blue Jays (1 first-place vote)
Bichette has cooled off in June, however he’s nonetheless main the AL in batting common (.317) and complete bases (146) and is tied for first within the Majors in hits (91). With a team-high 14 dingers in 67 video games, he’s additionally on tempo for his first profession 30-homer season.

Others receiving votes: Yordan Alvarez, Yandy Díaz, Randy Arozarena, Adley Rutschman, Adolis García, Julio Rodríguez, Mike Trout, José Ramírez, Rafael Devers

1) Ronald Acuña Jr., OF, Braves (42 first-place votes)
It’s not laborious to see why Acuña obtained near-unanimous help from our voters once more. The NL chief with 3.3 bWAR, Acuña is on tempo for 32 homers, 70 steals and 140 runs scored with a .331/.402/.563 slash for a Braves membership that’s tied for the most effective document within the NL.

2) Freddie Freeman, 1B, Dodgers (4 first-place votes)
The 2020 NL MVP is squarely within the operating for one more, hitting .338 with 13 homers, 24 doubles, 44 RBIs, 57 runs and a .999 OPS over 66 video games this season. That features a .405 batting common and a 1.219 OPS throughout his previous 29 video games.

3) Corbin Carroll, OF, D-backs
After three consecutive shedding seasons and 5 straight with no playoff berth, the D-backs are main the NL West with a stunning 40-25 document, and Carroll is an enormous purpose why. The speedster has notched a .404/.456/.865 slash line with six homers, 16 RBIs and 5 steals over his previous 13 video games — an 11-2 stretch for Arizona — and is on tempo to develop into the second participant in AL/NL historical past (becoming a member of Mike Trout) to provide 30-plus homers and 40-plus steals throughout his rookie season.

4) Luis Arraez, 2B, Marlins (1 first-place vote)
Can Arraez hit .400? It’s one thing we may very well be monitoring all season because the Marlins second baseman continues to rack up hits like a present-day model of Tony Gwynn. He completed Sunday’s sport with an MLB-best .397 common and .447 on-base proportion, going 91-for-229 with 19 walks and solely 13 Ok’s by 61 video games. Acquired from the Twins within the offseason, Arraez has helped Miami go 37-29, together with a 17-5 document in one-run video games.

5) Mookie Betts, OF, Dodgers
Betts’ constant excellence nearly flies below the radar at this level, however he’s on monitor to earn the fifth top-five MVP end previously eight years. After setting a private greatest with 35 homers in 2022, Betts already has 17 large flies in 2023, giving him an opportunity to achieve the 40-homer plateau for the primary time.

Others receiving votes: Sean Murphy, Juan Soto, Pete Alonso, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Nolan Arenado, Dansby Swanson, J.D. Martinez, Jorge Soler