Now that we are at the end of August, it’s time to take a closer glance at the MLB AL and NL MVP betting favorites.
Let’s look first at the MVP race in the NL, one that has essentially become a two-man competition between Ronald Acuña Jr. of the Atlanta Braves and Mookie Betts of the Los Angeles Dodgers. With both players having extraordinary seasons down the stretch, Acuña and Betts have been trading places as No. 1 and No. 2 on the oddsboard.
Over in the AL, Shohei Ohtani boasts short odds. Will anyone be able to catch up with so little baseball left to play?
Let’s dive into the odds.
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National League MVP*
Ronald Acuña Jr.: -195 (bet $10 to win $15.13)
Mookie Betts: +140 (bet $10 to win $24 total)
Freddie Freeman: +3200 (bet $10 to win $330 total)
Matt Olson: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total)
*odds as of 9/4/2023
Braves’ Ronald Acuña Jr. & Dodgers’ Mookie Betts lead Team of the Month
Ben Verlander gives his ‘Team of the Month’ for August and Los Angeles Dodgers’ Mookie Betts & Atlanta Braves’ Ronald Acuña Jr. highlight his team.
Shohei Ohtani is on a remarkable run this season, both at the plate and on the mound. He is putting up stats in a manner that the game has not witnessed since Babe Ruth was in his prime. In fact, he has been so good this year that FanDuel and DraftKings Sportsbooks have removed any AL MVP futures from their oddsboards as we head into the home stretch.
Ronald Acuña Jr. is also having a year for the ages, boasting 29 home runs and 61 stolen bases entering Tuesday. Remember, only four players have made it to the 40/40 club in MLB history, and no player has done so with more than 46 stolen bases. Acuña Jr. is in rare company indeed.
“Acuña is Acuña because he is this fast and this dynamic while also being one of the best hitters in the sport,” FOX Sports MLB Analyst Jordan Shusterman wrote earlier this month. “As remarkable as his fearlessness on the basepaths has been, it’s the degree to which his elite production at the plate has returned that makes him the National League MVP front-runner.”
However, Betts has entered the picture by hitting over .450 in August.
On the season, Betts is hitting .312 with 35 home runs, 93 RBIs and a .606 slugging percentage, and his 35 homers have tied his career high. Acuña is hitting .335 with 31 homers, 79 RBIs, 61 stolen bases and a .418 on-base percentage.
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