I really like to come up with original titles for posts, and even though I did think of this one myself, I knew the moment I did that there was no way someone else hadn’t already done so. I was correct. However, I’m sticking with it. I considered Right Said Freddie and Buy One, Get One Freeman, but clearly they finished second and third in the vote that took place inside my head. Wait, I’ve got a better one. How’s “Freddie, Willing and Able”? Perhaps I should go with that. Oh, who’s kidding, I’m too lazy to change it and then have to rearrange the previous few sentences I’ve already written. “Primed and Freddie To Go”? Don’t rush me, I’ll get the post when I’m “Good and Freddie”?
Don’t look now, but Freddie Freeman is the real National League MVP. Say what??? With all the attention on Fernando Tatis and Juan Soto, Freeman has not so quietly been making his case as the best hitter in the NL. Who are we kidding, he’s been doing that for the last several years. Tatis might be exciting and flashy while Freeman could be the poster boy for boring. However, at the end of the day the only thing that matters are the numbers.
| Player | AB | R | H | 1B | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | K | SB | CS | AVG | OBP | SLG | FPTS | PPPA |
| Tatis | 178 | 46 | 54 | 27 | 10 | 2 | 15 | 40 | 23 | 48 | 9 | 0 | 0.303 | 0.396 | 0.635 | 198 | 0.98 |
| Freeman | 156 | 37 | 52 | 26 | 15 | 1 | 10 | 42 | 31 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0.333 | 0.45 | 0.635 | 189 | 1.00 |
If you look closely at those numbers they are practically neck and neck. When I need to compare two points league players I will often look at points per plate appearance. As you will see, Freeman has the slight edge. The reason I give Freeman the overall nod is because he is striking out less and walking more, which translates to the higher batting average and OBP. At the end of the day I’d be happy with either of them on my team, but I really just wanted to point out that Freeman deserves a bit more of the spotlight than he’s been getting.
Truth be told, the only reason I didn’t pick Juan Soto is because he has only 132 plate appearances as compared to Freeman (196) and Tatis (207). Even though Soto has the best per plate appearance numbers, I think we have to go with the guys that with nearly 50 percent more plate appearances. However if Soto keeps this up he will overtake them by season’s end.
National League power! Huh? Looking at the top ten hitters based on points, eight of them play in the National League.
| Player | FPTS | PPPA |
| Fernando Tatis SS | SD | 198 | 0.98 |
| Freddie Freeman 1B | ATL | 189 | 1.00 |
| Manny Machado 3B | SD | 185 | 0.93 |
| Mookie Betts RF | LAD | 167 | 0.88 |
| Mike Trout CF | LAA | 167 | 0.94 |
| Trea Turner SS | WAS | 166 | 0.88 |
| Mike Yastrzemski LF | SF | 147 | 0.75 |
| Trevor Story SS | COL | 147 | 0.77 |
| Jose Abreu 1B | CHW | 146 | 0.77 |
| Juan Soto LF | WAS | 146 | 1.15 |
Here are the top 15 based on points per plate appearance. Is that two Seagers I see? It sure is. At this point I think Kyle Seager has to be the leading candidate for fantasy MVP when you factor in ADP. Mike Yastrzemski was leading that race for a while, but Seager has refused to slow down.
| Player | FPTS | PPPA |
| Juan Soto LF | WAS | 146 | 1.15 |
| Freddie Freeman 1B | ATL | 189 | 1.00 |
| Fernando Tatis SS | SD | 198 | 0.98 |
| Ronald Acuna CF | ATL | 128 | 0.96 |
| Mike Trout CF | LAA | 167 | 0.94 |
| Manny Machado 3B | SD | 185 | 0.93 |
| Mookie Betts RF | LAD | 167 | 0.88 |
| Trea Turner SS | WAS | 166 | 0.88 |
| Nelson Cruz DH | MIN | 145 | 0.87 |
| Bryce Harper RF | PHI | 136 | 0.86 |
| Kyle Seager 3B | SEA | 142 | 0.86 |
| Eric Hosmer 1B | SD | 107 | 0.84 |
| Dominic Smith 1B | NYM | 112 | 0.82 |
| Kyle Tucker LF | HOU | 142 | 0.82 |
| Corey Seager SS | LAD | 139 | 0.82 |
While Ryan Mountcastle has only played 19 games, it’s worth pointing out that his 59 points and 0.87 PPPA is very strong start to his MLB career. He’s a player that has quickly gained my attention in keeper leagues.
Another player with a strong PPPA (0.88) is Austin Slater. I’m not really interested in him, but I he has earned a mention in today’s post. I really hope his middle name is Christopher or Charles.
Here are my top five at each position.
Catcher
J.T. Realmuto (118 points, 0.76 PPPA)
Will Smith (76 points, 0.86 PPPA)
Austin Nola (100 points, 0.71 PPPA)
Pedro Severino (82 points, 0.63 PPPA)
Willson Contreras (91 points, 0.58 PPPA)
First Base
Freddie Freeman (189 points, 1.00 PPPA)
Jose Abreu (146 points, 0.77 PPPA)
Luke Voit (135 points, 0.81 PPPA)
Eric Hosmer (107 points, 0.84 PPPA)
Dominic Smith (112 points, 0.82 PPPA)
Paul Goldschmidt (110 points, 0.74 PPPA)
Second Base
Whit Merrifield (138 points, 0.71 PPPA)
DJ LeMahieu (102 points, 0.75 PPPA)
Wilmer Flores (119 points, 0.73 PPPA)
Tommy La Stella (109 points, 071 PPPA)
Brandon Lowe (114 points, 0.70 PPPA)
Robinson Cano (95 points, 0.76 PPPA)
Third Base
Manny Machado (185 points, 0.98 PPPA)
Kyle Seager (142 points, 0.86 PPPA)
Jose Ramirez (138 points, 0.74 PPPA)
Anthony Rendon (132 points, 0.77 PPPA)
Nolan Arenado (126 points, 0.73 PPPA)
Shortstop
Fernando Tatis (198 points, 0.98 PPPA)
Trea Turner (166 points, 0.88 PPPA)
Corey Seager (139 points, 0.82 PPPA)
Trevor Story (147 points, 0.77 PPPA)
Tim Anderson (115 points, 0.76 PPPA)
Bo Bichette (63 points, 0.95 PPPA)
Outfield
Top ten to account for all outfield positions and added Nelson Cruz to the mix since I didn’t want to do a DH-only list.
Mike Trout (167 points, 0.94 PPPA)
Juan Soto (146 points, 1.15 PPPA)
Ronald Acuna Jr. (128 points, 0.96 PPPA)
Mookie Betts (167 points, 0.88 PPPA)
Bryce Harper (136 points, 0.86 PPPA)
Nelson Cruz (145 points, 0.87 PPPA)
Kyle Tucker (142 points, 0.82 PPPA)
Michael Conforto (138 points, 0.76 PPPA)
Marcell Ozuna (144 points, 0.75 PPPA)
Mike Yastrzemski (147 points, 0.75 PPPA)
Starting Pitcher
Shane Bieber (29 PPS)
Trevor Bauer (26.75 PPS)
Jacob deGrom (24 PPS)
Yu Darvish (26.3 PPS)
Aaron Nola (24.5 PPS)
Gerrit Cole (22.7 PPS)
Clayton Kershaw (24.3 PPS)
Kenta Maeda (24.4 PPS)
Lucas Giolito (20.9 PPS)
Dylan Bundy (21.67 PPS)
Gotta love them 7IP complete game shutouts!
Are you Freddie for some football?
Following malamoney on Twitter at @malamoney
