MVP! MVP! MVP!

Were he to have a bad season, the Mets wouldn’t be able to get rid of him; were he to have an average season, they couldn’t afford him.  Now they can’t afford to lose him.

Through 64 games, he has 49 runs, 97 hits, 19 doubles, 11 triples, 3 homers, 27 ribbies, 22 steals in 27 attempts, (an .814 stolen base percentage) just 25 strikeouts, and .346 average, .389 on base, and .525 slugging.  Over 162 games that’s 124 runs, 245 hits, 48 doubles, 28 triples, 8 home runs, 84 extra base hits, 68 RBI, 56-68 on stolen bases, 63 K’s, and a .914 OBP.  Now, I know at some point, he has to slow down.  But those are MVP numbers, and they don’t even include the fact that he not only plays shortstop, but he’s the best defensive shortstop in the game.  And 28 triples?  Can he really do that?  That’s insane.  No one’s hit that many in a year since 1912!

So there we have it.  Reyes must be considered the frontrunner for MVP, and he’s on the trading block.  That got me thinking- has anyone ever been traded in the midst of an MVP season?  So I looked it up.  And since 1911, when the first MVP was awarded, not one Most Valuable Player award winner has played for two teams in one season.  Rick Sutcliffe won the Cy Young Award playing for Cleveland and the Cubs, but his Cy Young was based solely on his National League numbers, and he was having a crappy season for the Indians before the trade. 

The best thing about this is that The Mets can’t get value for him- who would they get in return?  Pujols?  Lincecum?  His season right now places him at that echelon.   The Mets would be foolish to attempt to trade him, and suicidal to not re-sign him.

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