Re-ranking the AL MVP race with 3 weeks to go

The most intriguing award race this season is easily the American League MVP, where five worthy candidates are battling neck-and-neck. Each distinguished themselves with fantastic Augusts, and they all have legitimate cases to win. Ask around, and opinions will change constantly, thanks to remarkable performances on a regular basis.

September has brought streaks, slumps, and pennant races, all of it affecting the overall view of this award. Now that we're almost two weeks into the final month, here's how we'd re-rank the AL MVP chase.

1. Mike Trout, Angels

It takes a truly special talent to remain the MVP front-runner - the case during each of Mike Trout's five full seasons - despite playing on a truly awful baseball team. That's what Trout is doing in Anaheim. Beyond having one of his best individual seasons by any metric, his brilliance on an otherwise unwatchable club is the very definition of "most valuable player." Trout's been worth over eight wins to the Angels this year - Kole Calhoun is second with 3.3 WAR - and it's simply unfathomable to think how low the team would be without him. It's hard to believe Trout has just one MVP, but he's doing everything to ensure that will change this November.

2. Manny Machado, Orioles

It's easy to lose track of Machado's season as part of the Orioles' thunderous offense, especially given Mark Trumbo's surprise 40-homer campaign. But everything in Baltimore still runs through Manny, who's kept Baltimore in a playoff spot and rendered the team's pitching troubles moot. He owns a 1.011 OPS in September, his fielding is virtually spotless, and he's a beast in the East, posting a .960 OPS against the Red Sox, Yankees, and Blue Jays combined. That's a recipe for a top-two MVP finish.

3. Mookie Betts, Red Sox

Though Betts has slowed a bit in September, his breakout season continues to be nothing short of remarkable. He's only seven steals shy of MLB's first 30-30 season since 2012, and has given David Ortiz excellent protection in the middle of the Red Sox order. He's also doing things no Boston hitter has done during an age-23 season since a young kid named Ted Williams. Ortiz may still be the beating heart of Boston, but Betts has made himself into the key cog of baseball's scariest offense. He won't win MVP this year, but his time will come.

4. Jose Altuve, Astros

At once point, Altuve seemed like a lock for this award as he headed for a third straight 200-hit season. He'll still reach that mark, and he's still leading the AL in hitting, but a September swoon - .178/.245/.267 with one homer - has hurt both him and the Astros, who were passed by the Yankees in the wild-card hunt. There's still time for Altuve to turn it around, and his newfound power this year (he's closing in on a 30-30 season himself) will still earn him votes. Just don't count on him moving up these rankings if the Astros continue sliding.

5. Josh Donaldson, Blue Jays

The reigning MVP has been even better in 2016 than his award-winning run a year ago, but Donaldson hasn't brought a lot of rain this September, hitting just .097 and mired in an 0-for-23 slump. Is he hurt? Is it just one of those ruts that showed up at the worst possible time? No one seems to know, but a prolonged swoon will affect his standing in this race. As Donaldson goes, so do the Blue Jays, and collapses by both team and player could remove him from contention. Of course, Donaldson's good enough to shake off his struggles and go on a run that could flip this race on its head by next week.