Stop me if you’ve heard this one: Buster Posey is carrying the San Francisco Giants towards October baseball.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one, again: Posey is making a case for himself as National League MVP.
If you find yourself reading NL MVP prediction articles, you’re likely reading about these four guys: Clayton Kershaw, Giancarlo Stanton, Jonathan Lucroy, and Andrew McCutchen. All of them are having exceptional years, and all of them deserve consideration. But Posey has put himself squarely in the conversation with an incredible second half.
Consider Posey’s numbers since the All-Star break: a .359/.405/.594 line with 10 home runs in 192 at bats. For the year, his batting line stands at .309/.361/.489 and he ranks in the NL top ten in batting average, home runs, RBI, slugging, and OPS. He’s followed up a .336/.372/.579 month of August with a .472/.488/.750 September. He is locked in, and the ridiculous offensive numbers prove it.
Moreover, Posey has taken a Giants team that looked dead in the waters of McCovey Cove this summer and has them poised to get to the playoffs again. On August 12, the Giants stood 5.5 games behind the Dodgers, their largest deficit of the season. Since that day, Posey has hit an incredible .412/.426/.725 and the Giants have gone 16-8, shaving 3.5 games from the Dodgers’ lead and putting themselves in prime position to either take the division or secure a Wild Card spot. Posey has been the catalyst.
This is nothing new for Posey. In his 2012 MVP season, he hit .385/.456/.646 as the Giants raced to a division title and ultimately another World Series championship. That year, Posey carried the Giants to the end as Melky Cabrera‘s suspension and Hunter Pence‘s poor hitting hindered the offense; this year, injuries to key pieces such as Brandon Belt and Michael Morse have dictated Posey do the same. It’s no coincidence the Giants started making their move in the standings the minute Posey got white-hot.
Is Posey the favorite to win the MVP? Probably not. Kershaw is having a season for the ages and is probably first in line, but if the Giants knock off the Dodgers for the division crown that may be enough to move Posey ahead of him. Stanton is having a tremendous season, but could be hurt by the Marlins missing the playoffs. The same could be said for Lucroy and McCutchen if their teams don’t make it, though Posey’s numbers are better than Lucroy’s and very simliar to McCutchen’s.
Posey is making a strong case for himself, regardless of the final outcome. And if he keeps hitting at this out-of-his-mind rate and the Giants keep winning, chances are he’s going to get his fair share of votes- maybe even enough to win.
Buster Posey, National League MVP. No need to stop me- I know you’ve heard that one before.
