Yesterday’s installment of Baseball’s Greatest (and Worst) analyzed the contenders for the American League’s Most Helpful Participant Award, and a really brief checklist it’s.

Shohei Ohtani is the AL’s sure winner. No person else has an opportunity.

So we flip at this time to the Nationwide League’s MVP race, which is a little more aggressive.

Ronald Acuna Jr., the dynamic proper fielder for the Atlanta Braves, has been the frontrunner for a lot of the season, because of his mixture of energy (27 dwelling runs by way of mid-August) and velocity (55 stolen bases). And he remained the chief on the three-quarters level of 2023’s schedule, in response to my calculations of offensive base values (BV).

I’ve defined BV a number of instances, and I supplied a refresher yesterday, however you may click on right here if it is advisable know extra.

What’s essential to know is that Acuna had a BV of plus-167 as of August 15, the date when the season hit the three-quarters pole. Which means he had reached 167 extra bases than the everyday massive leaguer would have attained underneath the identical circumstances.

Solely three different NL gamers are in triple digits, and all three are a substantial distance behind Acuna. But a scorching September may thrust any of them into robust MVP competition.

Acuna’s former Atlanta teammate, first baseman Freddie Freeman of the Los Angeles Dodgers, is the runner-up with a BV of plus-133. He’s adopted by the person who changed him at first place for the Braves, Matt Olson (plus-128), and the proper fielder for the Dodgers, Mookie Betts (plus-114).

Two of the NL’s prime 4 gamers have already got MVP {hardware} of their possession. Betts earned the American League’s trophy in 2018, whereas Freeman gained the Nationwide League’s award in 2020.

Scroll right down to see the highest 20 gamers within the Nationwide League by way of offensive base values on the three-quarters mark, adopted by a team-by-team checklist of BV leaders.

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• 1. Ronald Acuna Jr., Braves, BV 167

• 2. Freddie Freeman, Dodgers, BV 133

• 3. Matt Olson, Braves, BV 128

• 4. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, BV 114

• 5. Juan Soto, Padres, BV 94

• 6. Corbin Carroll, Diamondbacks, BV 83

• 7. Cody Bellinger, Cubs, BV 73

• 8. Christian Yelich, Brewers, BV 62

• 9. Christian Walker, Diamondbacks, BV 61

• 10. Ha-Seong Kim, Padres, BV 60

• 11. Ozzie Albies, Braves, BV 53

• 12. Sean Murphy, Braves, BV 51

• 13. Jeimer Candelario, Nationals-Cubs, 48

• 14. Paul Goldschmidt, Cardinals, BV 46

• 14. Francisco Lindor, Mets, BV 46

• 16. Will Benson, Reds, BV 45

• 16. Will Smith, Dodgers, BV 45

• 18. Austin Riley, Braves, BV 44

• 18. Spencer Steer, Reds, BV 44

• 18. Lars Nootbaar, Cardinals, BV 44

• Braves — Ronald Acuna Jr., BV 167

• Brewers — Christian Yelich, BV 62

• Cardinals — Paul Goldschmidt, BV 46

• Cubs — Cody Bellinger, BV 73

• Diamondbacks — Corbin Carroll, BV 83

• Dodgers — Freddie Freeman, BV 133

• Giants — Wilmer Flores, BV 37

• Marlins — Jorge Soler, BV 37

• Mets — Francisco Lindor, BV 46

• Nationals — Lane Thomas, BV 35

• Padres — Juan Soto, BV 94

• Phillies — Brandon Marsh, BV 33

• Pirates — Jack Suwinski, BV 36

• Reds — Will Benson, BV 45

• Rockies — Nolan Jones, BV 29