Cubs infielder Javy Baez finishes second in NL MVP voting

Cubs infielder Javy Baez came up short in his bid to win the National League MVP Award, finishing second to the Brewers’ Christian Yelich.

Baez had no first-place votes and finished with 250 points. Yelich, who won his first MVP Award, received 29 of the 30 first-place votes and finished with 415 points. Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado finished third with 203 points.

Baez, 25, was bidding to become the second Cubs player to be MVP in the last three seasons, joining Kris Bryant, who won in 2016.

In addition to his league-leading 111 RBI, Baez hit a career-high 34 homers and stole 21 bases. He became just the third Cubs player with at least 30 homers and 20 steals in a season, joining Sammy Sosa, who did it three times, and Ryne Sandberg. A notoriously aggressive hitter, Baez walked just 29 times for the season, fewer than all but two MVP winners.

Yelich, 26, who became the fourth player in Brewers history to win MVP honors, heated up after the All-Star break, hitting .367 with 25 home runs and 67 RBI in 65 games. He was at his best when the season reached its peak, going 11-for-24 with 17 RBI as Milwaukee closed the season with eight straight wins to erase its deficit to the Cubs in the division.

Red Sox’ Betts wins AL MVP Award

Red Sox star Mookie Betts was a runaway winner in the American League MVP voting.

Betts received 28 first-place votes and 410 points in winning his first MVP Award. He hit a major-league-leading .346 with 32 homers, 80 RBI and 30 stolen bases as the leadoff hitter for the Red Sox, who won a team-record 108 games and their fourth World Series title in 15 seasons.

Angels outfielder Mike Trout, a two-time MVP, followed with one first-place vote and 265 points.

Indians third baseman Jose Ramirez was third with 208 points.