THREE EARLY MVP CANDIDATES

In my opinion, Shoeless Joe will always be an offensive league. Yeah, we have our share of great pitchers. However, SJ's bread and butter is on the offensive side. Here's three players in each league who could walk away with the MVP hardware.


AL

Del Gutierrez, MIL

Del is simply having a career season so far, as he's on pace to shatter previous season highs in virtually every offensive category. A .347 BA, 24 HR, and 52 RBI make him a darkhorse candidate for the Triple Crown. It's a slim shot, but if anyone can do it, Del can.

Jo-jo Mack,TRE

A show of hands as to who expected to see this guy in this list? I better not see any, because Jo-jo has come from nowhere. He's a hair behind Del Gutierrez in all categories, but he's still raking. Now, we just need to see if he can keep the pace up for a whole season.

Pepe Cortes, AUS

This guy has the biggest potential out of everybody. There's no telling how good this guy will be, but if how he's doing now is any indication, we have a super stud on our hands. He's the unquestioned leader of Austin's super young team.


ONE MORE: Steve Wynn, VAN (.329 BA, 17 HR, 51 RBI)


NL

Walt Cox, SFE

You can say all you want about Cox taking advantage of SFE's home stadium, but make no bones about it: Cox can flat out hit a baseball. His .363 BA is out of this world, but it's the 1.122 OPS that has jaws dropping.

Milt Kipling, ROC

One of the best offensive catchers in Shoeless Joe, some would even say THE best. Right bobkordecki? An .333 BA is nothing to shake a stick at, as well as his 18 HR and 47 RBI. Another all-star trip in the works, no doubt.

Luis Trevino, SFE

It wouldn't be right to list MVP candidates without mentioning this guy. One of the few players who makes a .340 BA look like it's a walk in the park. His 16 HR and 44 RBI are impressive as well. But his most impressive stat? His current streak of 869 games played. Enough said.


ONE MORE: Vic Rios, LA (.345 BA, 12 HR, 23 RBI)