In May, if you had told me that Carlos Delgado would be mentioned as a possible MVP candidate, I'd have laughed at you. On June 1st, he was hitting below .230 and looked lost at the plate. But I stand (or sit) here today, writing it myself: Carlos Delgado has become a legitimate NL MVP candidate. Plain and simply put: there's no way the Mets would be in first place without Carlos Delgado.

Delgado now has 90 RBI. That's only 9 RBI behind team leader David Wright (who has been mentioned in MVP discussion). His 90 RBI are better than Pujols, Utley, Holliday, Braun, Burrell, and Fielder. And it doesn't look like he's going to slow down any time soon. In his last 280 at-bats, he has hit 20HR. It's no coincidence that since Delgado started hitting with authority in July, the Mets started winning games (31-17 since July 1st).

There are many worthy of consideration, but perhaps no one has been more valuable to his team during the last two months than Carlos Delgado has been to the Mets. Albert Pujols is always in the MVP discussion, but the Cardinals are in 3rd place in the NL Central and it will be difficult for them to overtake the Brewers or Cubs. Pujols is also losing consideration to teammate Ryan Ludwick who is also having a monster season. Regardless, the Cardinals remain in 3rd place. The Phillies hitters have slowed down considerably, and the Cubs are winning collectively as a team, more so than having one player carrying them. Lance Berkman plays for a bad ball club, which will make it difficult for him to win the award. Ryan Braun is perhaps the most legitimate MVP candidate at the moment. I dare say that Braun and Delgado are 1-2 respectively in my MVP voting if the season ended today.

Fortunately, the season does not end today. The NL MVP Award will come down to the final week of the season. But if Delgado continues his tear (he's even playing well on defense), and the Mets are able to make the playoffs, it will be difficult not to look in Delgado's direction. David Wright has been hitting well the entire season, yet the Mets struggled early on. It wasn't until Delgado started hitting that the Mets became serious contenders again. And in September, when the last regular season pitch is thrown, it may just be Carlos Delgado who is a serious contender to become the NL MVP.



Court Adjourned!