00:00NL MVP. This isn't like Shohei Ohtani is minus 135, Tom. And how many shows did we do last year?
00:07You're going like, I can't believe Ohtani is plus money to win the MVP at this point. And it's like,
00:11that's only going to get worse and worse and worse. And it will. For me, the only way Shohei
00:15Ohtani doesn't win this award, Tom, is if he's injured for half of the season. Minus 135. You're
00:20crazy. Soto is good. Acuna, Francisco Indoor. I get it. Ohtani's on the mound pitching and
00:26hitting at the plate. He will be the MVP. That minus 135 seems crazy to take, Tom,
00:32but I don't think it is. He's going to be the MVP. He just is.
00:37There's only one scenario that I've said for over a year at this point where a player can
00:41challenge him. And, you know, we said it countless times last year, Donnie, as soon as Ohtani steps on
00:45the mound, he's going to win MVP and it's all locked up. The only circumstance where I truly
00:51believe a player can contend with him to win the MVP is if Ronald Acuna does what he did in
00:582023,
00:58which is when he went for 41 home runs, 106 RBIs and 73 stolen bases. So some player,
01:06or it has to be a Schwarber who has 65 home runs. Some player has to do something so dramatic
01:12at the
01:13plate that they can supersede and unseat what Ohtani is doing at the plate and pitching. Because,
01:19Donnie, even if Ohtani has a quote-unquote down year at the plate, and let's say he has 38 home
01:24runs and 90 RBIs, if he's doing that while pitching, he's just going to win the award. It's
01:30that simple. No doubt he is. Like, when I look at, like, again, Juan Soto is fantastic. Can he win
01:36the MVP? Of course he can. Ronald Acuna Jr., the same way. But when I try to get value, Tom,
01:40and not
01:40even on this list, he's actually still at 30 to 1, though. A guy like Ellie Dela Cruz. Steal me
01:44a ton of
01:45bases. Have that power, Tom, where I get 45 bombs, and also the extracurriculars. Give me the
01:50Reds challenging the Cubs for the entire season. Like, I'd rather take a chance on Ellie Dela Cruz
01:55at 30 to 1 than Mookie Betts at 30 to 1, even Bryce Harper at 31, or Kyle Schwarber, because
01:59I think he
02:00can have those other metrics. Like, holy cow, look at what he's doing as opposed to just hitting home
02:05runs and what the Reds are doing. I think Ellie Dela Cruz may be worth a shot. You say, well,
02:09he can't win that. Well, he's the type of freak show that might be able to do some freak things
02:13to
02:13sort of move up if he can. That's what I was making with Acuna. Going 41 and 73 is a
02:18banana.
02:19Having an OPS over 1,000 is what you need. Like, you need to do something so dramatic that you
02:24are
02:24breaking, tying records, along with having team success, which will absolutely go a long way in
02:29the conversation.
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