Both MLB MVP races are getting plenty of attention entering the all-star break. While in past seasons it's almost been a runaway at this stage for one league or another, that's not the case this year. For now, it appears to be a two man race in the National League but things can always fluctuate as the season continues to unravel.

Here are the three National League MVP leaders entering the MLB All-Star break, ranked.

3.) Ronald Acuna Jr. – Braves

In a lot of seasons, the year Ronald Acuna Jr. has had to date would be more than good enough to lead the way in either MLB MVP race. This year however, he's at No. 3 entering the All-Star break.

Acuna Jr. has pieced together another incredible first half despite the Atlanta Braves sputtering in the NL East.

The star outfielder and leadoff hitter for the Braves has 23 home runs, 16 stolen bases, an OPS of .978 and a WAR of 3.0. In other words, he's been phenomenal.

While Atlanta has yet to kick things into gear as a team, Acuna Jr. has helped carry a heavy amount of the workload just to keep things afloat as the Braves will look to make a second half push.

Acuna Jr. has all the makings of a MLB MVP with his dazzling speed and raw power at the dish mixed with his entertaining style of play. He'll likely be right in the thick of the race at the end of the year and will be in many MVP races in the years to come. It's no surprise to see Acuna Jr. checking in at No. 3 at the All-Star break.

2.) Fernando Tatis Jr. – Padres

This one was incredibly tough to rank. Fernando Tatis Jr. is quite literally becoming one of the faces of baseball and he's backed it up with his play on the field in a major way.

We've heard of cover athlete jinxes before, especially in EA's Madden, but it's not the case for MLB The Show. Tatis Jr. was the cover athlete this year for the popular video game and all he's done this year is gone out and tear the cover off the baseball on a nightly basis.

The stats are jaw-dropping, the plays defensively have helped him become a walking highlight reel and while baseball has a tough time showcasing their stars, Tatis Jr. has done well enough to shine a light on the sport with what he's doing in San Diego.

A batting average over .300, 27 home runs (league lead), 58 RBI, an OPS of 1.083 (league lead) and just for good measure, 18 stolen bases as well (league lead). He tops a ton of statistical categories and has shown no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Tatis Jr. is more of a “1a” pick for the NL MVP award then he is a ranking of No. 2; it's that close.

If there are those who will make the cases for Tatis Jr. to be the winner at the halfway point, there won't be much of an argument on this end.

The Padres look poised to make the playoffs and have a nice blend of pitching and offense that can carry them quite aways if they're able to stamp a ticket to the dance. And a big reason for that, Fernando Tatis Jr.

1.) Jacob deGrom – Mets

What made this near impossible to differentiate is that we're dealing with a pitcher and an everyday player for the top two spots in this MLB MVP race. What stood out in the end are the historical numbers and the historical pace Jacob deGrom is on for the New York Mets this year.

Jacob deGrom has been so good for the Mets that if he can get even one or two runs of support, New York feels as though they will win every time he toes the rubber. He's been that dominant.

The fastball constantly hovers at 100 mph and the slider sits in the low 90's. Most guys in MLB are happy with a fastball around 92-93 mph. That's deGrom's slider.

For all the league leading numbers for Tatis Jr., deGrom has even more on the pitching side.

He leads the league in ERA (0.95), WHIP (0.541), K/9 (14.4), HR9 (0.4), BB9 (1.2), and FIP (0.99). To put this all in a nutshell, deGrom gives up the fewest walks per nine innings while also striking out the most hitters per nine innings and he gives up the fewest home runs while allowing the fewest runs per game. It's the absolute picture of dominance to a level that has seldom, if ever been seen on the mound.

To shine a brighter light on deGrom's year and to put it in perspective, in his last start he went 7 innings and struck out 14 Atlanta Braves. However, he yielded three runs in those seven innings. Any pitcher on the planet would take 7 innings of three run ball while punching out 14 batters. For deGrom, it was his worst start of the season and him giving up three runs had people shocked. In his previous seven starts COMBINED he had allowed three runs. He's been that good.

For those still questioning the greatness, keep these numbers in mind via MLB.com.

  • deGrom’s 0.54 WHIP is the lowest by any pitcher in any 14-start span since at least 1901
  • His streak of allowing one or no earned runs in 12 straight starts from April 5 to June 21 is the longest streak among traditional starters since earned runs have been official. He broke a tie at 11 straight with Bob Gibson in '68
  • He's allowed just nine earned runs in this 14-start span, along with 136 strikeouts. He's the only pitcher since ER became official with at least 135 strikeouts and fewer than 10 earned runs allowed in a 14-game span.

It's impossible to go wrong one way or another with the top two on this MLB MVP race in the National League. Because deGrom has been on a historic pace, he gets the slight nod for now over Fernando Tatis Jr. on this list.