Could Xander Bogaerts be the 2015 MVP?

As a Yankee fan it is nice to see that the Red Sox are in last place of the AL East. But as a Dutch baseball fan I want to see every Dutch/Aruban/Curacaoan player to do well in MLB an MiLB.
In case of the Red Sox, we are talking about Xander Bogaerts. The 22-year old kid from Aruba has a break out year with the team from Beantown. He is even leading the team in games played and batting average. He is second in at bats only to Mookie Betts, who has had five more at bats than Xander.

Where many experts claimed that he was a below average fielder last year, those same experts say that he has made huge strides forward. Though he has not made many spectacular plays, he has made most of the plays that he should, resulting in a fielding percentage of .987.

Especially his hitting that leads the team makes me wonder if he could be this year’s MVP. I hear you say: “He’s not playing for a contender.” So? Is it engraved in stone that an MVP should play for a contender or a league champion? The fact that most of the MVP’s in the past played for a contender in the year that they won the award was in the hands of the writers who voted for them. I realize that many experts will disagree with me. I am only a fan, I am certainly not an expert on this matter. But that cannot withhold me from posting a (perhaps) silly idea like this.

There aren’t any rules regarding an MVP vote. Only a few guidelines:

“There is no clear-cut definition of what Most Valuable means. It is up to the individual voter to decide who was the Most Valuable Player in each league to his team. The MVP need not come from a division winner or other playoff qualifier.

“The rules of the voting remain the same as they were written on the first ballot in 1931: (1) actual value of a player to his team, that is, strength of offense and defense; (2) number of games played; (3) general character, disposition, loyalty and effort; (4) former winners are eligible; and (5) members of the committee may vote for more than one member of a team.”

So these guidelines are pretty wide open. Every member of the BBWAA can go into his own direction with the voting.

Knowing the flexible guidelines, I really don’t know why Xander could not be the MVP of 2015. I still don’t know why he didn’t get enough votes for a spot on the Amercian League All Star roster. The kid is riding a very hot streak. In his last 30 games he was hitting .373; in his last 15 .381 and in his last 7 .419. Especially with hitting being overrated compared to defense, I think he could have a shot at the 2015 MVP award.

Lets put his numbers next to the guidelines as explained above.

(1) actual value of a player to his team, that is, strength of offense and defense:  There is no doubt about the strength of his offense right now. As described above, he is an average fielder right now, making all the possible plays.
(2) number of games played: As shown in the stat on top of this post, he has played the most games of his team by far. Okay that may be a bit exaggerated since Brock Holt is only four behind him. But so far he has played the most games for the Red Sox.
(3) general character, disposition, loyalty and effort: General character: In an interview with Dutch television, at the start of spring training, it became clear that Bogaerts is a very modest guy; a virtue that several major league players are missing. I place disposition and effort together: Since he has practiced endlessly with third base coach and infield instructor Brian Butterfield, to overcome his throwing errors, there is no doubt about his disposition and effort. Loyalty: When the Red Sox brought back Stephen Drew to shortstop, Bogaerts was moved to third. It was clear that he didn’t feel comfortable at the position, but he played there without complaining.

Looking to his stats, he will probably never be a power hitter or a speed demon on the base paths. But with his current performance, he may be the spark plug that the Red Sox need. Sure they are still in last place, but trailing by eight games isn’t a gap that can’t be overcome. Look at the 1969 Mets. If the Red Sox manage to straighten their ship, I don’t know why Bogaerts couldn not be the 2015 MVP. And even if they stay in last place, with his current performance he deserves a few votes in the MVP voting at least.

I realize that it is too soon to tell, but the fact that Xander is hitting in the number two spot of the Red Sox lineup, indicates that he is very valuable to them.

Just my two cents.