As July has come to a close, it now comes to a time where we look at some stellar performances from the National League that deserve recognition. With the All-Star Game festivities coming to a close, baseball’s most prestigious awards are reserved for the best of the best. In this article, I will break down who I believe will win each award from the national league, as well as a runner-up to each of the awards. (All stats as of 8/7/22)

Most Valuable Player

The most prestigious of the 4 major awards in baseball is the Most Valuable Player (MVP) which is given to the most outstanding player in both leagues. The MVP race is one of the more captivating races with this year not being an exception. Similar to the American League, the national league has plenty of fantastic talent worthy of receiving the MVP award.

1. Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals 1B. 438 PA’s, 5.7 WAR, 190 wRC+

While Aaron Judge is mashing and killing it in the American League, Paul Goldschmidt is quietly running away with the race while also making huge strides to improve from 2021. Since joining the Cardinals in 2019, He has not had an OPS+ under 115, a wRC+ under 117, and just continues to just mash baseballs while also getting on base at a .400 Clip. Goldschmidt has

been the most valuable player to his team through the first half of the year.

2. Austin Riley, Atlanta Braves 3B. 463 PA’s, 4.8 WAR, 158 wRC+

While Goldschmidt has been the MVP so far in the NL, Riley hasn’t been that far behind production-wise. The stats have been great, the defensive numbers have been good, and he

has been great when under pressure. July was far and away his best month. In July alone, he finished 1st in home runs in the NL, tied for first with RBIs (with fellow Atlanta brave Matt Olson), led the NL in Hits, OPS, slugging, 2nd in OBP, and 4th in Batting average for the month.

Cy Young Award

What truly goes into determining the best pitcher in one league? To me, the 4 factors that go into determining the best pitcher in a league are Run Prevention, Volume, limiting contact, and

getting swings and misses. Similar to the AL The NL has a plethora of phenomenal pitching talent worthy of receiving the Cy Young Award.

1. Sandy Alcantara, RHP Miami Marlins. 1.88 ERA, 217 ERA+, 5.9 WAR

In a season where the crown of the best pitcher on the planet was vacated due to an Injury to Jacob deGrom, Sandy Swooped in and filled that role perfectly. Judging by my criteria for best

pitcher in the NL Sandy fits all 4. He checks the box of volume leading the league in innings pitched with 158 and leads the league in batters faced with 605. He checks the box of run

prevention with 37 Adjusted pitching runs. He checks the final 2 boxes of limiting contact and getting swing and misses and limiting contact with a 22% strikeout rate and an average 27%

whiff rate on all of his pitches.

2. Corbin Burnes, RHP Milwaukee Brewers. 2.49 ERA, 164 ERA+. 3.8 WAR

Corbin Burnes had his true breakout year back in 2021. He nearly one-upped that with a phenomenal first half, continuing to be the anchor of a really solid Brewers pitching Staff. His

Cutter took off in 2020, he made adjustments over a full 162 in 2021, and now has put himself in a solid place to win his 2nd Cy Young in back-to-back years. Burnes Checks all 4 boxes of

criteria. 130 Innings pitched, 22 adjusted pitching runs, 50.7 average whiff rate on his pitches, and a 32 strikeout rate. One of the last true Aces remaining in baseball.

Rookie of the Year

Every year there's a new crop of young players ready to take the league by storm. And this year is no different. This year’s crop of rookies in the National League is no different with your predictable guys at the top of the list, and several others stepping up in between.

1. Spencer Strider, Atlanta Braves RHP. 2.79 ERA, 151 ERA+, 2.5 WAR

Quadzilla! Drafted in 2020 by the Braves, Strider soared through the Majors to make his debut in late 2021 (he only made 2 appearances). With an opening in the Braves Starting Rotation, Manager Brian Snitker made the call to give Strider the nod to start, and he didn’t relinquish that position. Strider has a fastball averaging in the high 90s and topping out at 101. Despite using only 2 other pitches in addition to his fastball. Strider has set himself up to be phenomenal down

the line and have a great second half of the year.

2. Michael Harris II, Atlanta Braves CF. 219 PA’s, 124 wRC+, 2.6 WAR

Another Brave! Harris got the call to the majors earlier in the year with an injury to one of the starting Braves outfielders, and similar to Strider, he did not let that position go. Strider is fast,

and he hits more to average than to power. A Positive DRS (5) and a positive UZR (2.9) show that he is a good defender in Center Field or either corner. Harris flew through the minors after originally being drafted by the Braves in 2019. Both Harris and Strider are on pace to give the Atlanta faithful more and more things to be excited about.

Manager of the Year

Out of the 4 awards mentioned, the manager of the year award is the most subjective of all the awards. The debate can be settled on who is managing the best teams or who makes the biggest difference with the manager coaching the game or without the manager coaching the game.

1. Dave Roberts, Los Angeles Dodgers. Current Dodgers Record: 75-33 .694 Winning %

Roberts has been the manager of the Dodgers since 2016. Since then, he has led the Dodgers to a playoff appearance every single year, winning a world series in 2020. Since 2016 Roberts

and the Dodgers have had 3 100 win seasons and only 1 season (covid year) with below 90 wins. With a lineup that Roberts has, he’s almost mandated to make the postseason and make

a run at the commissioner’s trophy, but what makes Roberts so special is he can finish towards the top of the league in both record and making deep playoff runs in every year he’s been a

manager. Roberts is truly in a managing league of his own.

2. Buck Showalter, New York Mets. Current Mets Record: 71-39 .645 Winning %

Showalter has re-entered the managerial scene with a new and revamped Mets team. The 3-time manager of the year award winner’s last managerial gig was with the orioles who let him

go after the 2018 season. With new players into the fold, Showalter faced the challenge of taking over in a new system with a new team roster-wise. And Showalter stepped up to the

challenge. He’s led the Mets to a current first place in the NL East and the second-best record in the NL behind the Dodgers. Showalter showed his doubters that he can keep up with the

current great managers in the sport of baseball.