Starting Nine (Week of April 24th)
The MLB is nearly through the first month of the season and teams begin to make assessments regarding their rosters and season prospect. Let’s take a look at this week’s starting nine.
Starting Nine (Week of April 24th)
#9. Baltimore Orioles 14-7 (+4000/+10,000) - The Birds continue to find a way and are now alone in second place in the AL East after sweeping the Tigers and Nationals in consecutive series. Last Week’s Rank: Unranked
#8. Texas Rangers 14-7 (+1400/+2800) - deGrom’s 11-strikeout performance against Oakland was a good sign after leaving his last game with soreness on his right side. The Rangers’ offense put up 64 runs in the team’s last seven games. Last Week’s Rank: 9th
#7. New York Mets 14-9 (+400/+850) - Pete Alonso once again looks like an MVP candidate with an MLB-leading 10 home runs. The Mets will soon welcome Verlander to the rotation as well. Last Week’s Rank: 6th
#6. Pittsburgh Pirates 16-7 (+10,000/+20,000) - The Pirates continue to defy the odds with a young team and upstart pitching staff. They have won seven straight and eight of nine and now welcome the Dodgers to Pittsburgh on Monday. Last Week’s Rank: Unranked
#5. Toronto Blue Jays 13-9 (+600/+1100) - Manoah’s outstanding start on Saturday vs. New York was a great sign for Jays’ fans. So were the team’s two out of three wins against the Bombers. Last Week’s Rank: 3rd
#4. Houston Astros 12-10 (+360/+700) - The Astros climbed back over the .500 mark with a sweep of the Braves over the weekend. The champs appear to have finally woken up. Last Week’s Rank: 8th
#3. Milwaukee Brewers 15-7 (+750/+1800) - The Brewers lost two of three to Boston over the weekend but still remain the class of the NL Central. An improved bullpen has the Brewers looking toward the playoffs again. Last Week’s Rank: 7th
#2. Atlanta Braves 14-8 (+310/+600) - The Braves got a bit of a wake-up call this weekend after being swept by the Astros. The Braves have their rotation back healthy, however, and should rebound nicely. Last Week’s Rank: 2nd
#1. Tampa Bay Rays 19-3 (+425/+900) - The Rays don’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon after a 5-1 week pushes the team further ahead in the standings. The loss of starter Jeffrey Springs to Tommy John surgery is concerning, however. Last Week’s Rank: 1
AL/NL MVP Candidates:
Let’s look at the favorites to win the major awards in MLB as April draws to a close.
Top-five AL MVP Candidates
#1. Shohei Ohtani (+110) - Ohtani is now at a season-low at +110 after another dominant start and continued success at the plate. His 0.64 ERA through four starts has Ohtani in the Cy Young race as well. Last Week’s Rank: 1st
#2. Mike Trout (+700) - Trout could end up splitting the vote with his teammate but if Ohtani’s pitching outshines his hitting, Trout can step to the head of the MVP table. Last Week’s Rank: 3rd
#3. Aaron Judge (+700) - The Yankees' offense looks far too similar to the end of last season; an inability to bunch together hits but always a danger to take one deep. Judge has six home runs and continues to look like the Yankees’ best defensive outfielder. Last Week’s Rank: 2nd
#4. Adley Rutschman (+1100) - The Orioles’ rise in the standings puts Rutschman in the MVP race. An outstanding defensive catcher, Rutschman also is the most potent bat in the O’s lineup. Can he keep it up while playing the most demanding position in the game? Last Week’s Rank: Unranked
#5. Vlad Guerrero Jr. (+1200) - Guerrero Jr. is the centerpiece of one of the game’s best lineups. After a slightly down year in 2022, Guerrero is in the top 10 in OPS and slugging percentage. Last Week’s Rank: Unranked
Top-five NL MVP Candidates
#1. Ronald Acuna (+350) - The Braves had a rough week but Acuna remains the very early frontrunner for the NL MVP and looks to be back in fine form after a down year in 2022. Last Week’s Rank: 1st
#2. Pete Alonso (+650) - Alonso continues to pace baseball in home runs and keeps the Mets in playoff contention while dealing with a banged-up pitching staff. Last Week’s Rank: 5th
#3. Trea Turner (+800) - Turner blasted his second long ball of the season over the weekend and still looks like a player that will threaten a 30/30 season in this Philadelphia lineup. Last Week’s Rank: 3rd
#4. Mookie Betts (+1300) - Betts hit his third home run of the season on Sunday and showed off his versatility by playing SS on Friday night. Last Week’s Rank: 4th
#5. Juan Soto (+1200) - Fernando Tatis Jr’s return to the lineup will only help Soto in the stacked Padres lineup. Hitting between Tatis and Machado should help Soto see more pitches to hit. Last Week’s Rank: Unranked
Top-three AL Cy Young Candidates
#1. Gerrit Cole (+400) - Cole remained undefeated after 5.2 innings of shutout baseball against the Blue Jays on Saturday. He is the class of the AL right now. Last Week’s Rank: 1st
#2. Shohei Ohtani (+380) - Ohtani’s odds have now gone lower than Cole’s after another stellar performance. He has the best ERA and the second-best K/9 rate in baseball. Last Week’s Rank: 2nd
#3. Jacob deGrom (+800) - deGrom struck out 11 over the weekend and looked as dominant as ever. He has the best K/9 rate in the AL and his ERA continues to dwindle. Last Week’s Rank: 3rd
Top-three NL Cy Young Candidates
#1. Zac Gallen (+500) - Gallen improved his shutout streak to 22.1 innings with seven shutout innings against the Padres. He is fourth in innings pitched and fifth in WHIP. Last Week’s Rank: Unranked
#2. Spencer Strider (+400) - Strider has the best Cy Young odds on the board as the 2nd-year starter has the game’s top K/9 rate and has a WHIP of 1.05. Last Week’s Rank: 3rd
#3. Julio Urias (+1000) - He is second in the NL in wins and innings pitched and has a K/9 rate of 11.2. As the Dodgers start winning, expect his odds to lower. Last Week’s Rank: 2nd
*All odds courtesy of Draftkings.com
By Mark Ruelle
