Maybe CC For NL MVP Talk Isn't So Crazy After All...

Could CC Sabathia really win the NL MVP award? I'm not talking the CY Young award, which would be improbable enough for a pitcher that switched leagues midseason, I'm talking the actual NL MVP. The discussion came up the other night on ESPN's Baseball Tonight, and Sabathia's named was seriously considered. After you're done thinking about how crazy of a scenario that would be, think about it some more. Would it be that surprising if he won?

Since being traded to the Brewers, Sabathia is 8-0 with a 1.60 ERA. He's also added a home run in that time, and improved his batting average with a 2 for 3 performance and 2 RBI. In the Brewers 9-3 victory against Houston on Monday, Sabathia went the distance again. I'm actually surprised now when he doesn't go the full nine innings.

It's not just his impact on the field that has put him in consideration to be the Most Valuable Player of the Senior Circuit. His jersey shirt at Miller Park is still selling for $35, and they are flying off the shelves. 10,000 fans walked up to buy tickets the night of his first start, and the Brewers have now sold out 16 straight home games. His arrival put the Brewers in the national spotlight, and changed the national perception of the team to "fun loving young kids" to "serious contenders in the National League".

It's hard to win the MVP as a pitcher, I mean, that's what the CY Young is for. And while I still give the team MVP award to Ryan Braun right now, at the end of the season, should Sabathia keep up this torrid pace, I may have to reconsider. Bottom line, thank God the Brewers traded for him. We're not where we are without him. Whether he's the "most" valuable can be debated, but we all know what he's worth to this team.

Other game notes... Ray Durham went 3 for 5 as Weeks sat with a sprained left thumb. Corey Hart went 3 for 4, which included a home run. Jason Kendall crossed home plate 3 times in tonight's contest.

Box Score.

TBC's Player of the Game: I don't write a Sabathia article and give it to Corey Hart. Sabathia gets the nod.

(AP Photo/Darren Hauck)