J.D. Martinez has a real shot at leading the American League in batting average, home runs and runs batted in. If he does, he'll have secured the 18th Triple Crown season in Major League Baseball history and only the second in the last 50 years.
However, he shouldn't and probably won't be named the AL's Most Valuable Player.
It's not because Martinez has disappointing numbers by Triple Crown standards. The Boston Red Sox slugger is batting .331 with 41 homers and 125 RBI. Those are decidedly excellent figures which rank second, second and first among AL hitters.