Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, perhaps the top contender for the National League Most Valuable Player award, on Thursday was named as one of the three finalists for the Players Choice Award as Player of the Year.
The other two finalists are heavy hitters in their own right — Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees and pitching/hitting star Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels.
In voting done by the major league players, Goldschmidt also was a finalist for Outstanding Player in the National League, where he is competing against Freddie Freeman of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta’s Austin Riley.