While the favorite to win the National League MVP is St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, that doesn’t mean there aren’t other worthy candidates.
His teammate, Nolan Arenado, has been stellar at this base and is a contender.
There is another strong candidate on the San Diego Padres: no, it’s not the injured/suspended Fernando Tatis Jr. or the recently-acquired Juan Soto.
It’s third baseman Manny Machado.
If we go to FanGraphs’ WAR (Wins Above Replacement), the Cardinals stars lead the National League with 7.1.
Machado is right behind, at 7.0.
In addition to some stellar defense at third base, Machado is slashing .296/.367/.532 with 31 home runs, 97 runs, and 100 RBI.
In a rough year for Tatis and somewhat of a down season for Soto, Machado and the Padres’ pitchers have stepped up.
Machado Is A Classy Teammate
In a classy move, the player credited his teammates when asked about the MVP race.
“‘My MVP is these players in here, these are my MVP in here. Every day I get to share the field with them…its a privilege and an honor and to get to put this uniform on every day it is even better.’ -Manny Machado,” Padres reporter Allison Edmonds tweeted.
"My MVP is these players in here, these are my MVP in here. Every day I get to share the field with them…its a privilege and an honor and to get to put this uniform on every day it is even better." -Manny Machado #padres pic.twitter.com/YfWz4XyKHa
— Allison Edmonds (@aedmondstv) September 27, 2022
By virtue of his superior offensive performance (he is slashing .318/.404/.585 with 35 round-trippers and 114 RBI), Goldschmidt should get the award, but there is no denying that both Arenado and Machado have had a more significant defensive impact.
The Padres are about to make the postseason after finding themselves out of the party last year.
They have Machado to thank, in addition to their brilliant pitching staff.
If Machado is healthy, he will give problems to whoever ends up facing the Padres in the postseason.
NEXT: The Padres Have A Clear Goal Within Reach