MLB midseason awards watch

Bregman finished fifth in the AL MVP voting last year, and he's continuing to build on that success. He hit .265-23-56 with a .927 OPS during the first half and has filled in nicely at shortstop for Carlos Correa. He ranked fourth in WAR in the AL at the break (4.1).

It's tough to fathom where the Yankees would be without LeMahieu, who has played Gold Glove defense all over the infield and is leading the AL in batting average. He's also showing nice pop with 12 home runs, 21 doubles and 64 RBI, helping him produce a nearly .900 OPS and 3.9 WAR.

Trout is the clear favorite to win the AL MVP as of the All-Star break, which would be the third of his career. As of the break, the star center fielder was leading the AL in home runs (28), RBI (67), walks (76), on-base percentage (.453) and slugging percentage (.646) while playing great defense.

Bell is having a breakout 2019 season, putting up massive numbers after changing his swing in the offseason. He was hitting .302-27-84 with a 1.024 OPS at the break, helping the Pirates to remain in contention in the NL Central.

Bellinger leads MLB with a 6.7 WAR, combining elite offense with great outfield defense. The 2017 NL Rookie of the Year is hitting .334-31-73 with a 1.118 OPS and has shown no signs of slowing down.

Yelich is trying to repeat as the NL MVP and is looking to top last year's incredible numbers. He leads the league with 32 home runs and is also hitting .330 with 68 RBI and 21 stolen bases. His 1.138 OPS leads the majors.

Minor has had a truly remarkable first half, with a 2.73 ERA and 1.164 WHIP in 19 starts despite pitching half his games at a hitter's park in Texas. The lefty is helping keep the Rangers in playoff contention and is also a legitimate MVP candidate.

Morton has been quite an offseason addition for the Rays. The former Astros starter has stepped up as an ace, with a league-best 2.35 ERA and 148 strikeouts in 118.2 innings.

Verlander finished second in the AL Cy Young voting last year but is hoping to win the award for the second time this year. He has a 2.98 ERA and league-best 0.81 WHIP with 160 strikeouts in 132.2 innings.

Arizona needed its best players to pick up the slack after losing Patrick Corbin, Paul Goldschmidt and A.J. Pollock in the offseason, and Greinke has done just that. He has a 2.95 ERA and 0.95 WHIP with 114/16 K/BB in 128 innings over 20 starts for Arizona.

Ryu had an amazing first half with 10 wins, a 1.78 ERA, and 0.93 WHIP over 116 innings for the Dodgers. He's walked only 11 batters.

Scherzer is looking to win his fourth Cy Young winner, and not even a broken nose has been able to stop him. The Nats ace has a 2.30 ERA and 0.98 WHIP and easily leads MLB with 181 strikeouts in 129.1 innings. His 5.5 WAR is easily tops among all NL pitchers.

Chavis' pace has slowed after swinging a hot bat upon his promotion to the majors, but he's still been terrific, hitting .258-15-48 in 307 plate appearances while playing three different infield positions.

Means garnered Baltimore's lone All-Star nod with his great first half. At the break, he had a 2.50 ERA in 82.2 innings between starting and relief, with a 3.14 K/BB ratio thus far.

Turnbull is currently sidelined with a shoulder injury, but he had a great first half. The Tigers starter posted a 3.31 ERA in 17 starts, with 84 strikeouts in 89.2 innings at the break.

Alonso is arguably the Mets best rookie since Dwight Gooden and has a chance to figure into the MVP conversation. He hit .280-30-68 with a 1.006 OPS during the first half and capped off his start by winning the MLB Home Run Derby.

Despite starting the year on the injured list with a shoulder issue, Soroka has become Atlanta's ace this season. The groundball specialist has a 2.24 ERA and 10 wins over 16 starts and made his first All-Star appearance as well.

Tatis has been lightning in a bottle for the Padres in his first season. The 20-year-old is hitting .339-14-33 with 13 steals and a 1.021 OPS in only 249 plate appearances. He missed time due to injury but hasn't missed a beat.

The Twins have the third-best record in the AL, 56-33 at the break, and now lead the rival Indians by 6.5 games in the AL Central. While the team's roster improved during the offseason, Baldelli has also managed the bullpen well without a true closer and overseen huge improvements from Jake Odorizzi, Martin Perez, Max Kepler and Jorge Polanco.

No team has had more injuries during the first half than New York, with big names like Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, Luis Severino and Miguel Andujar missing significant time. The team does have plenty of depth, but Boone deserves credit for keeping the ship running smoothly.

Cash's Rays won 90 games last season and are on the way to an encore this year. Tampa Bay has contended with the loss of Tyler Glasnow and struggles from 2018 ace Blake Snell, still sitting at 52-39 at the break.

The Pirates pitching staff has been a major disappointment this year, with Jameson Taillon suffering an arm injury and Chris Archer struggling. Despite those issues, at the break the Pirates were just 2.5 games back in the loaded NL Central with a surprising lineup. Hurdle deserves some of the praise.

It looked like Arizona was rebuilding in the offseason, trading Paul Goldschmidt for young players and allowing free agents Patrick Corbin and A.J. Pollock to walk. Despite those losses the Diamondbacks have held it together with a 46-45 record at the break and a real shot at a wild-card spot. Lovullo has guided breakout seasons from Ketel Marte, Eduardo Escobar and Christian Walker, among others.

The talk of the offseason in the NL East was the big moves from the Phillies, Nationals and Mets, yet Snitker's Braves lead the division by six games at the break. The team's youth movement continues to develop nicely, even while there have been some speed bumps this year like losing closer Arodys Vizcaino and struggles from Kevin Gausman and Mike Foltynewicz.