The Scores Settle the Award Arguments

Our MVP, Cy Young and Rookie Scores — who leads each race, and by how much.

September means the award chatter gets loud, so here's where our Scores actually have it. Yordan Alvarez and Jacob Misiorowski hold the clearest leads, while Pete Crow-Armstrong has bullied his way to the front of a crowded NL MVP field. A few of these races are tight enough that the next month decides them.

MVP watch

Our MVP Score (0–100) — each hitter’s OPS, on-base, power, run production and playing time graded against the league average, then blended. Higher is better.

Yordan Alvarez tops the AL at an 84.5 Score, his .317 average and 1.037 OPS keeping him ahead of Ben Rice (76.9) and Junior Caminero (76.4) even after a cooler last month. In the NL, Pete Crow-Armstrong leads at 80.3 and is the rare front-runner still heating up, a 1.030 OPS over his last 30 days from a center-field spot that had given the Cubs sub-.790 production for years; James Wood (77.6) and his 40-homer teammate-in-spirit Kyle Schwarber (75.7) keep it interesting.

• Yordan AlvarezHouston Astros · .317 AVG · 37 HR · 94 RBI · 1.037 OPS84.5SCORE›
• Ben RiceNew York Yankees · .253 AVG · 35 HR · 87 RBI · 0.865 OPS76.9SCORE›
• Junior CamineroTampa Bay Rays · .281 AVG · 37 HR · 88 RBI · 0.897 OPS76.4SCORE›

• Pete Crow-ArmstrongChicago Cubs · .280 AVG · 38 HR · 91 RBI · 0.943 OPS80.3SCORE›
• James WoodWashington Nationals · .265 AVG · 30 HR · 73 RBI · 0.924 OPS77.6SCORE›
• Kyle SchwarberPhiladelphia Phillies · .240 AVG · 40 HR · 83 RBI · 0.872 OPS75.7SCORE›

Cy Young watch

Our Cy Young Score (0–100) — ERA, WHIP, strikeout and walk rates, workload and quality starts, each graded against the league average, then blended. Higher is better.

Jacob Misiorowski owns the best pitching Score on either side at 87.3, with a 1.97 ERA, a 0.79 WHIP and 227 strikeouts for Milwaukee, and Chris Sale (84.0) makes the NL a real two-man conversation. The AL is tighter: Cam Schlittler leads at 82.0 behind a 2.04 ERA and a scorching 1.13 mark over his last 32 innings, with Dylan Cease (75.4) and his 221 punchouts giving chase.

• Cam SchlittlerNew York Yankees · 2.04 ERA · 0.94 WHIP · 210 K82.0SCORE›
• Dylan CeaseToronto Blue Jays · 2.25 ERA · 1.04 WHIP · 221 K75.4SCORE›
• Drew RasmussenTampa Bay Rays · 2.95 ERA · 0.93 WHIP · 149 K72.8SCORE›

• Jacob MisiorowskiMilwaukee Brewers · 1.97 ERA · 0.79 WHIP · 227 K87.3SCORE›
• Chris SaleAtlanta Braves · 2.06 ERA · 1.00 WHIP · 177 K84.0SCORE›
• Yoshinobu YamamotoLos Angeles Dodgers · 2.67 ERA · 0.90 WHIP · 161 K75.3SCORE›

Rookie of the Year watch

Our Rookie Score (0–100) — the MVP and Cy Young engines applied to first-year players, hitters and pitchers ranked on one scale. Higher is better.

The AL rookie race is a literal tie at 71.1, Munetaka Murakami's 29 homers for the White Sox against Parker Messick's 2.46 ERA for Cleveland, though Murakami's .631 OPS over the last month has cooled the bat side. In the NL, Sal Stewart leads at 72.5 with 105 RBI and 31 homers from a Reds first-base slot that had scraped along near .707 in prior years, comfortably clear of Nolan McLean (64.2).

• Munetaka MurakamiChicago White Sox · .215 AVG · 29 HR · 59 RBI · 0.844 OPS71.1SCORE rookie›
• Parker MessickCleveland Guardians · 2.46 ERA · 1.02 WHIP · 161 K71.1SCORE rookie›
• Kazuma OkamotoToronto Blue Jays · .227 AVG · 28 HR · 78 RBI · 0.742 OPS66.9SCORE rookie›

• Sal StewartCincinnati Reds · .266 AVG · 31 HR · 105 RBI · 0.821 OPS72.5SCORE rookie›
• Nolan McLeanNew York Mets · 3.06 ERA · 1.12 WHIP · 172 K64.2SCORE rookie›
• TJ RumfieldColorado Rockies · .291 AVG · 14 HR · 64 RBI · 0.826 OPS61.9SCORE rookie›

Stats via the MLB Stats API. Colors, form scores and power rankings are Baseball Lens's own.