Kansas City Royals: Regular Season MVP Candidates

Kansas City Royals third basemen Mike Moustakas (8) – Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

• Hits: 156
• Runs: 73
• Doubles: 34
• Triples: 1
• RBI: 82
• Walks: 43

Who would have thought that Mike Moustakas would make an MVP list of any kind after his disappointing 2014 season? Yet lo and behold… Here he is.

At the beginning of the season, Ned Yost had Moose in the number two spot in the opening day lineup, and fans were not happy to say the least. Moose couldn’t hit anything last season (other than the occasional home run, which was nice when it happened) so why put him so early in the lineup?

Well, Yost knew that Moose could hit the ball every which way now, something the former first round pick struggled with in the past. Moose showed off these skills on opening day when he blasted a home run over the left center field wall to put the Royals up 4-0 in an eventual route of the White Sox.

Moose continued to impress throughout the season and even made it to his first All-Star Game (with the help of the voting crazed Royals fans).

One of my favorite Moose moments this season was watching him come just feet away from hitting for the cycle against the Yankees back in May.

The rest of the nation got to see Moustakas’ power during the postseason last year, but this year he was able to turn more heads. That alone puts Moose in the potential MVP category.

Next: Check please