NL MVP: Harper or Cespedes?

   I was there the day Bryce Harper got his first major league hit. I saw the inside out swing, the way he kept his hands in, and thought to myself, wow. But I never imagined this. Harper has gone on a tear this year, hitting an incredible .339! On top of that, he's leading the National League in home runs (41), runs (117), and batting average (.339), and leading baseball in on base percentage (.470), slugging percentage (.663), and on base plus slugging (1.133). Harper has put the National's offense on his back and boosted them from last to second place. However, as impressive as it is, Harper shouldn't be the MVP. Most Valuable Player. There is another candidate, who isn't having as good a season as Harper, is still more valuable.
    Yoenis Cespedes, the Mets outfielder, has kick started an otherwise desolate offense, boosting the Mets, who don't have as good pitching as Harper's Nationals, above them into first place. In the two months that Cespedes has been a Met, he has hit .294, with 17 home runs and 44 RBI's. Although Cespedes' stats aren't as good as Harper's, you have to think of how valuable Cespedes is to the Mets. In May and June, the Mets were 13-15, and 12-15. After Cespedes became a Met, in August and September, the Mets 20-8, and 15-9 (September's not over yet).
    You can make a case for either of the two stars. All that matters is what you think. I know what I think. Do you?

Kershaw vs. Greinke

     Until July, Zack Greinke was the ace of the Dodgers, and the clear Cy Young winner.

     After 2014's unheard of numbers, everybody expected big things out of the left handed ace of the Dodgers known as Clayton Kershaw. However, things did not go as planned in the early weeks of the season for Kershaw. In April he had an ERA of 3.73, and May (3.97 ERA) he settled down in June, posting a 2.16 ERA in 42.1 innings pitched, and then having a major month of July, with an incredible 0.27 ERA in 33 innings. On top of that, Kershaw has the 2015 strikeout lead, with an incredible 11.42 k/9. Kershaw pitches  tonight, gunning for his 15th win, which would put him in contention for the Cy Young award, which would be his third in a row. 
     1.63. 1.63! An incredible ERA. Zack Greinke may not strike out as many people as his team mate Clayton Kershaw, but he allows less runs than him. Zack Greinke was the clear cut Cy Young for most of the year, until a bad outing in June brought his ERA up from the 1.3's to the 1.6's. Regardless, Greinke has one of the best records in baseball, 18-3, all while consistently going 7 or 8 innings, rarely giving up more than one run.
    So the question is, who's the Cy Young? From a consistency, wins, and ERA standpoint, you have to give to Greinke. But if you look at the past three months, ever since June, Kershaw has had an ERA of under 1.2, along with the strikeout lead. From a dominance standpoint, you have to give it to Kershaw. Who do you think should be the Cy Young. I certainly know who I think it should be.

Donaldson for MVP

   This past offseason, the now laughable trade of Josh Donaldson being sent to Toronto for Brett Lawrie , Kendall Graveman, Sean Nolin, and Franklyn Barreto getting moved to the A's seamed reasonable for Billy Beane. In hindsight, this was not the smartest of moves, as Donaldson's 108 runs and 115 RBI's spot him number one in baseball... and an MVP candidate. Donaldson, along with other new additions such as David Price and Troy Tulowitzki, and returning stars Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion, have taken the Blue Jays from third place to first place.

   Donaldson is starting to be seen as the leading AL MVP Candidate, for good reason. Aside from leading baseball in runs and RBI’s, he third in the American League in home runs, fourth in hits, second in slugging, and first in total bases. The only player who boasts similar numbers is Nolan Arenado, who is on the last place Colorado Rockies in the National League. While some people would argue that Mike Trout (Los Angeles Angels) has provided more support for an otherwise half formed Angels lineup (Albert Pujols and Kole Calhoun provide much needed support), if the Angels fail to make the playoffs, then Trout will not be a valuable as Donaldson in making a playoff run at the World Series. Think about that.