DJ LeMahieu Needs to Be in the MVP Conversation

DJ LeMahieu has been, as his Yankees teammates call him, an absolute Machine this season, and he needs to be talked about in the American League MVP conversation. The Yankees’ infielder has put on a show this year, proving that signing him to that $24 million, a two-year deal was the right decision.

LeMahieu has put up a batting average of .331, an on-base percentage of .376, and he has a slugging percentage of .510. He has also hit 13 home runs, driving in 65 runs batted in and scoring 66 runs. Not only are these stats amazing, but LeMahieu has been an absolute terror for opposing teams when it comes to giving him runners on base.

LeMahieu leads the MLB in average with runners on base, hitting .397 when runners are on base. He also holds a .431 on-base percentage when hitting with runners on base. LeMahieu has 58 runs batted in with runners on base.

When runners are in scoring position, LeMahieu has a .444 batting average and a .473 on-base percentage, leading the MLB in both categories. LeMahieu has 52 runs batted in with runners in scoring position, which leads the American League. He is only second to Josh Bell, who has 61, for the major league lead.

Here's what DJ LeMahieu sees with runners in scoring position: pic.twitter.com/oHoWEvbQJa
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) June 7, 2019

There was somehow a time in the beginning of the year where LeMahieu was not even a regular in the lineup, but that quickly changed when he showed what he could bring to the table. LeMahieu has been the best player for the Yankees thus far, putting the team of his back and being a very key part in the Yankees being the top team in the AL East.

The Yankees have had a lengthy list of players put on the Injured List this season, but a constant for most of the Yankees’ lineup has been DJ LeMahieu. LeMahieu has come up big time and time again, and a case could be made that the Yankees would not be in the position they are in without him.

When it comes to being the Most Valuable Player, the player brings their team to a place that they would not be in without them. A favorite for the American League Most Valuable Player is almost always Los Angeles Angels star outfielder Mike Trout. However, LeMahieu should be the favorite.

The Angels are 5.5 games behind in the Wild Card race with arguably the best player in baseball, Mike Trout. Even with him, they are still way behind in the playoff race. If you take Trout out of their lineup, all they do is go farther behind in the playoff race.

With DJ LeMahieu and with some of their best players taking long IL stints this year, such as Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, the Yankees are atop the AL East, a place where the Yankees have not been in quite some time. If LeMahieu is taken out of the Yankees’ lineup, there is almost no way that the Yankees are in this position.