Rotowire’s Erik Halterman joins The Sweat to give his MLB MVP picks on DraftKings Sportsbook for the 2022 MLB season.
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Video Transcript
Jessie Coffield:
All right, how about odds for NL MVP? Bryce Harper is +1000 to repeat, while Juan Soto at +350 is the favorite.
Erik Halterman:
Yeah, some things to remember about MVP voting—the voters do like to spread it around. The last time we had a repeat MVP was Albert Pujols in 08-09, and they sometimes become a sort of a lifetime achievement award if there’s no clear winner. Voters also like a narrative too, if you lead a team to the playoffs that’s definitely going to help you. So while guys like Juan Soto and Fernando Tatis Jr. are I think correctly favorites, the payout of +350 doesn’t seem great given all that. I like Francisco Lindor at +3000, if he bounces back and then the narrative goes with him as the Mets win 100 plus, I think he’s got a shot.
If Freddie Freeman doesn’t return to Atlanta and Acuna misses time—which it looks like he’s going to—but if Atlanta is still good, I think a guy like Austin Riley or Ozzie Albies at +3000 could be a decent narrative bet.
Jessie Coffield:
All right, how about AL MVP? Ohtani is + 300 as the favorite again, Mike Trout is right behind him at +350. Who are you looking at here?
Erik Halterman:
Yeah, similar story here, I’d look to go a little bit down for guys who could have the narrative if they push their team to a strong season. If the Rangers actually make it all the way back and have a playoff push—I don’t think that’s likely, but at +2200 for Corey Seager and +4000 for Marcus Semien, if one of those guys is viewed as carrying the team to the postseason after signing, I think that’s a decent narrative there.
You go even further down for Javy Báez at +6500, it’s not the expected outcome that he finishes at MVP level, but he’s done it in the past just a few years ago was a runner-up to Christian Yelich. And if he leads the young Tigers team to the playoffs, I think he would get that narrative boost as well. I should mention again Byron Buxton at +4000—if this is the healthy Byron Buxton season, he’s got that MVP ceiling. We just have never seen him show it for a full 162 games.
Erik’s Pick: Francisco Lindor (+3000)
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