Welcome to the ninth episode of the Call to the Pen flagship podcast! New episodes Monday and Wednesday. Today Jon discusses the increasingly interesting races for the Wild Card and MVP in the AL, as well as the prospect of the Miami Marlins, with a new ownership group, slashing team salary by trading Giancarlo Stanton.

 

Host and FanSided contributor Jonathan Platek breaks down the MVP race in the American League (with a splash of NL discussion as well), and asks aloud whether an pitcher can be in serious contention for an MVP award. Jon also points out the continued dark-horse candidacy of Mike Trout for the AL MVP Award, totaling three options for the prize: Jose Altuve, Chris Sale, and Mike Trout.



Jon also discusses the recent news that the new Marlins ownership group, lead by Derek Jeter, are looking to slash player salaries in the coming years, which could foreshadow a Giancarlo Stanton trade to some other contender.