Juan Soto did not appear to have any hard feelings after losing the NL MVP vote to Bryce Harper.
The Baseball Writers’ Association of America on Thursday released the results of their AL and NL MVP votes. While Shohei Ohtani was the unanimous winner in the AL, there wasn’t as much of a landslide in the NL.
Harper took 17 of the available 30 first-place votes to win the award. Soto came in second with 274 total points and had six first-place votes. Harper was the clear winner, with Soto actually finishing closer to third-place winner Fernando Tatis Jr. than Harper.
Soto posted a classy note on Instagram regarding the vote.
“Congratulations to my former teammate @bryceharper3. Enjoy your second MVP, much love! Thank you for everything…I’ll see you next year!!!!” Soto wrote.
Harper and Soto were teammates on the Nats in 2018. Harper then signed with the Philadelphia Phillies after that season, while Soto and the Nats went on to win the 2019 World Series.
There were questions about whether Harper was living up to his contract with Philly. Some can still debate that matter, but he quieted a lot of doubters by winning his first MVP award with his new team (and second career NL MVP award).
Though Soto had a very nice season batting .313 with a league-high .465 on-base percentage, the Nats’ last-place finish in the NL East likely hurt his cause. Conversely, the Phillies finishing second in the NL East likely helped Harper’s claim to the award.
Photo: Jul 30, 2021; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals left fielder Juan Soto (22) in the dugout before the game against the Chicago Cubs at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
