In the Major League Baseball (MLB) 2025 season, four Dominican players are contenders for the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award this year. In 2024, Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees and Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers won their respective league’s MVP awards.
First is Juan Soto. The Dominican slugger has boasted an on-base percentage of over .400 for the past seven years and is expected to repeat this. He is currently the #4 on the all-time list for achieving at least 25 home runs and receiving 125 bases on balls. Only Hall of Famers Barry Bonds, Babe Ruth and Ted Williams are currently ahead of Soto in this category.
And, also in the National League, there is exciting player Elly de la Cruz with his impressively fast pitches, stolen bases and seemingly impossible plays. It was nearly an endless streak of great baseball from a very young man playing his first full season of Major League Baseball. Elly de la Cruz had been an outstanding player for just a few months in 2023, and, in 2024, he became the first player in baseball history to hit at least 20 home runs and steal at least 60 bases, despite striking out 32% of the time!
Over in the American League there is Vladimir Guerrero Jr. whose 2021 season produced numbers such as 48 home runs and an OPS of 1.002 that earned him the number two spot in that year’s MVP voting. In 2024, his OPS was .940, an excellent number indeed. At 26 years of age, and entering a year where he becomes a free agent, he could well have that wonderful year that earns him the MVP.
Lastly, there is Jose Ramirez, who has been close to the prize on at least five occasions, ending up in the top five nominees. But no cigar. In 2024 Ramirez was one double and one home run short of becoming only the second player in MLB history to hit 40 home runs, 4 doubles, and steal 49 bases. Known for his consistency and durability, this might just be the year for Sr. Ramirez.
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Listin Diario
10 March 2025