Major League Baseball

FOX Sports Documentary: 'The Race: Quest For Baseball's MVP Title' debuts Sunday

Updated Oct. 10, 2021 11:45 p.m. ET

By Ben Verlander
FOX Sports Baseball Analyst

This year’s MVP races in Major League Baseball just felt different.

Historic performances in both leagues provided storylines that were so compelling that you could make a documentary about it.

Well, FOX Sports did just that.

The documentary, titled "The Race: Quest For Baseball’s MVP Title," will premiere Sunday night after Game 3 of the White Sox-Astros series on FS1. The film – which I was tapped to narrate – offers an in-depth look at the MVP races throughout the season, with commentary from players and baseball experts.

Let’s start with the American League.

The favorite coming into this season was Mike Trout, already a three-time MVP winner. Things took a turn when Trout strained his right calf in mid-May. He was initially expected to miss six-to-eight weeks but ended up sitting out the rest of the season.

As time went on, though, it became apparent that we were watching one of the greatest seasons ever from Trout’s Angels teammate Shohei Ohtani.

A dominant presence on the mound and at the plate, Ohtani posted numbers we've never seen before. Though the winners won't be announced until November, Ohtani ran away with the AL MVP race early and really never looked back.

Ohtani led the AL in WAR (Wins Above Replacement) at 9.0, and he was named to the All-Star team as both a pitcher and hitter. His numbers at the plate (46 homers, 100 RBIs, .965 OPS) and on the mound (9-2, 3.18 ERA, 156 strikeouts in 130 IPs) show that Ohtani literally had the value of two star players in one.

While Ohtani remains the heavy favorite and might even end up as a unanimous winner, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. posted a season for Toronto (.311/.401/.601 with a league-leading 48 homers and 111 RBIs) that would be worthy of the award in many other seasons.

Could Vlad grab some votes from Ohtani? Time will tell, and this documentary might even give you a little insight.

Now, the National League MVP chase? That’s a whole different story.

The year started with Atlanta Braves right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr. on an absolute tear and the clear front-runner for the award. But like Trout, Acuña went down with an injury that sidelined him for the season. He tore his right ACL on July 10.

From that point on, the NL MVP was up for grabs.

Fernando Tatis Jr., Bryce Harper, Jacob deGrom and Juan Soto all had MVP moments. Back and forth they went, with no one player establishing himself as a clear favorite.

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In the end, the race will likely come down to Harper vs. Soto.

Harper hit .309 with 35 homers and 84 RBIs, but his Phillies finished eight games out of an NL wild-card spot.

Soto's Nationals struggled even more in a 65-97 season, but his .313 batting average, 29 homers and 95 RBIs were eye-popping numbers. Also eye-popping was Soto's MLB-leading .465 OBP.

Tune in Sunday night after Game 3 of the ALDS to get an inside look at who likely will take home the MVP hardware next month.

Ben Verlander is an MLB Analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the "Flippin' Bats" podcast. Born and raised in Richmond, Virginia, Verlander was an All-American at Old Dominion University before he joined his brother, Justin, in Detroit as a 14th-round pick of the Tigers in 2013. He spent five years in the Tigers organization. Follow him on Twitter @Verly32.