Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Christian Yelich captured the National League Most Valuable Player Award in runaway fashion on Thursday. Yelich helped the Brewers return to the playoffs for the first time in seven years and received 29 first-place votes and 415 points from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.
Chicago Cubs infielder Javier Baez was next with 250 points. Colorado third baseman Nolan Arenado finished third with 203 points.
Yelich won his first NL batting title with a .326 average. he set career highs with 36 homers and 110 RBIs.
Yelich fell just short of becoming the National League’s first Triple Crown winner since Joe Medwick in 1937. He finished two home runs shy of Arenado and one RBI behind Baez. He hit .367 with 25 homers and 67 RBIs in the second half.