By the numbers, Goldschmidt should win. I think McCutchen takes it though.
Unfortunately, you're right! The most important stat is "made it into the playoffs". The Pirates, led by McCutchen, earned it. The D'backs, led by Goldy, blew it. (I'm talking about Wild Card.) The fault wasn't Goldy's at all, but he's paying the price.
Blame it on Miggy, who swung from the heels rather than protecting Goldy with RBI's as our cleanup hitter. Blame it on Gibson and his non-committal batting orders and changes in philosophy -- "gritty", no, "more home runs", no "gritty". And blame it on Kevin Towers for stocking an unbalanced roster.
It is heartbreaking. Goldy is not just
our most valuable player. He is our
only valuable player. 'Pretty much consistent from start to finish.
But the team's results show that there is too much mediocrity, from the coaching to the players, to be chosen the
league's most valuable player.