He's definitely having a monster year(nice to see one of our "can't miss" prospects finally pan out!) but it's hard to vote for him over Hamilton at this point

I don't get why everyone automatically gravitates towards Hamilton as the de-facto MVP in the AL. I get that the RBI number is especially outrageous. But RBI as the definitive measure of a player's value is ancient, uninformed, or ignorant thinking.

You put any guy in the middle of a strong lineup and he's going to drive in 100 runs. Heck, you put any guy in the middle of even a just above average lineup and they'll drive in 100. Rico Brogna did it for the Phillies in the late 90s... twice!

You put a guy of Hamilton's ability in the middle of the best lineup in baseball in one of the best hitters' parks in the game and you're going to get a 140 RBI season's pace. BTW, I don't really think Hamilton will get to 140 because he hasn't had his month on the DL yet this season.

By advanced statistical measure, Hamilton's numbers aren't as large as they appear to those who just look at "traditional" stats. He's just seventh in the AL overall WAR (Wins Above Replacement) for position players (which factors in defensive position and prowess) behind Lawrie, Trout, Cano, Reddick, Jackson, and Kipnis. Lawrie's another kid that's as good as they come and the fact that he plays a premium position with few real quality stars shoots him up the leaderboard here. Cano is a fantastic player and Jackson's having a monster year. I guess Kipnis is on this list because of the postion he plays and Reddick must be putting up some massive OF assists numbers in Boston.

Even when it comes to offensive WAR, which takes into consideration just what a player does at the plate AND on the bases, Hamilton ranks only fourth in the AL this season. Trout, Cano, and Cabrera all currently rank ahead of Hamilton who's tied for fourth with Austin Jackson.

For my money, I'd give a serious look to what Trout has done and the impact it's had on the team since he's been called up. WAR stats are cumulative and he leads the league in offensive WAR having played only in 3/4 of the number of games the rest of the guys I've mentioned have. But accepting that my opinion is biased, even if I'm not picking Trout as my AL MVP right now, my pick would be Cano. He's having a MONSTER year and also plays a premium (up the middle) position pretty well.

As an aside, Cano's a Boras guy, right? Scott must be crapping the sheets in anticipation of how much money his client's going to get next off-season. $225 million is not out of the question...

Yeah, he's a Boras client. I'm sure the Yankees are going to make some room for him.

I get that he plays in a hitters park in a great lineup BUT he still is batting well over .300, leads the league in HR's with 27, has 75 rbi's, 54 runs and is slugging .635! You aint just putting any good player in his spot and getting those numbers. believe me, i HATE Texas but its hard to argue he isnt MVP right now, especially with Texas sitting in 1st place

And no, i dont discount Trouts affect on the Angels. We were sitting 6-14 before we called him up and looked like the biggest disappointment in baseball. Since he got called up, we have i think the best record in baseball. Of course though, Pujols also started hitting and trumbo has been a madman but Trout definitely looks like the real deal!

Why not Trout as the MVP? Guy leads the league in hitting, stolen bases, OPS+ and is on pace for 100 runs scored, 80 RBI, 20+ homers, 60 steals, and a run-away gold glove. If he keeps his first half pace up, then by goodness yes he should get serious consideration as the MVP.

Fred Lynn did not make the HOF. Didn't come close. Had a decent career and had a huge All-Star game a few years later while playing for the Angels. Jim Rice, who was also a rookie the same year as Lynn and actually had equal numbers until he broke his wrist in late September and missed the rest of the year and the post-season, did make the Hall.
I have a book published in 1981 or thereabouts that list Lynn as one of the top 100 players of all-time, and the fourth or fifth best CF.

With most players, there's only so often a guy can go running full speed into outfield walls... Lynn broke down very quickly but in his prime, and even later in his career with the Halos, he was a fantastic player to watch play.