Shohei Ohtani won the American League MVP last season for the Los Angeles Angels. He was the face of the MLB last season and baseball fans loved him. Ohtani pitches on the mound and he can also hit the baseball. His team didn’t make it to the MLB Playoffs last season, but it doesn’t matter more than half of the time for that award anyways here as well.
There are those that are making MLB picks today for the American League MVP by analysts. There are those casual sports betting fans that are placing bets for the American League MVP as well. Who are the favorites to win the 2022 American League MVP Award?
Shohei Ohtani +375
Ohtani will be the favorite once again to win the American League MVP this year. He is one of those players that will pack baseball stadiums and sell tickets. Shohei Ohtani may be a hotter ticket in town right now rather than his own teammate, outfielder Mike Trout.
Ohtani played in 155 games last season for the Los Angeles Angels. His batting average was .257 with 46 home runs and 100 RBIs, along with 26 stolen bases. Shohei Ohtani also was caught stealing 10 times.
He also had a .372 OBP, a .592 SLG, and a .965 OPS. Ohtani won the MVP last year more for his hitting than his pitching. He had a 9-2 record with a 3.18 ERA. In 130.1 innings pitched, Shohei Ohtani gave up 98 hits and 48 runs. He only walked 44 batters and struck out 156. His pitching could be even better this season though.
Mike Trout and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. +450
Mike Trout and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. both have the second-best odds to win the 2022 American League MVP. Trout missed most of the 2021 season with an injury and that sparked the presence of Shohei Ohtani. If Mike Trout stays healthy for the 2022 season for the Los Angeles Angels, they could be a very dangerous baseball team.
He only played in only 36 games last season with Los Angeles. His batting average was .333 with eight home runs and 18 RBIs, along with two stolen bases. Trout didn’t get caught stealing at all.
He also had a .466 OBP, a .624 SLG, and a 1.090 OPS. If Mike Trout had stayed healthy for the entire season, he could have maybe stolen the MVP award from his teammate. The OPS in MVP awards matters.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. put up monster numbers last season for the Toronto Blue Jays. A lot of people could argue that he could have very well won the American League MVP Award. He could potentially be a great bet to win it this year because Toronto could be one of the best teams in all of baseball this season.
Guerrero Jr. played in 161 games last season for the Toronto Blue Jays. His batting average was .311 with 48 home runs and 111 RBIs, along with four stolen bases. He was caught stealing only once.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a .401 OBP, a .601 SLG, and a 1.002 OPS. He led all of these categories in the big leagues, but how did he not win the American League MVP last season, but Shohei Ohtani did though?
Aaron Judge +1600
Aaron Judge is going to have to stay healthy and have a big year for the New York Yankees for them to have any shot to make it to the MLB postseason. Judge has the fourth-best odds to win the American League MVP. There is a massive gap between second-third and fourth odds for this award.
He played in 148 games last season for New York. His batting average was .287 with 39 home runs and 98 RBIs, along with six stolen bases. Aaron Judge was also caught stealing only once.
His OBP was .373, his SLG was .544, and his OPS was .916. The OPS wasn’t high enough for him and it will need to be much higher this season for him to get some consideration.
