The Cincinnati Enquirer

We here at Power Rankings Central will take a look at the race for individual honors this week (stats are entering Friday).

NL MVP

1. Gary Sheffield, Atlanta: Hitting .354 with 16 homers and 51 RBI. Shouldn't it be illegal to hit the ball that hard?

2. Albert Pujols, St. Louis: Hitting .379 with 16 homers. So good he plays, despite not being able to throw.

3. Mike Lowell, Florida: Best hitter nobody sees. 18 homers, 49 RBI.

4. Austin Kearns, Reds: Has been around the RBI lead all year. Sound defensively.

5. Rafael Furcal, Atlanta: Leads NL in hits and runs. Has stolen 11 bases in 12 tries.

AL MVP

1. Alfonso Soriano, N.Y. Yankees: 18 homers, 17 steals. Plays great defense, although he has a tendency to make silly errors.

2. Carlos Delgado, Toronto: Reds fans saw first-hand Friday that this guy can mash: .466 with runners in scoring position.

3. Bret Boone, Seattle: Has been on an amazing power surge and plays exceptional defense.

4. Nomar Garciaparra, Boston: .315, 10 homers, 40 RBI. Key Boston's success.

5. Garret Anderson, Anaheim: 12 homers, 53 RBI and hitting .315.

NL Cy Young

1. Woody Williams, St. Louis: 8-1, ERA of 1.99. Cards would be lost without him.

2. Kevin Brown, Los Angeles: 8-1, 2.06 ERA. Guess he's healthy.

3. Eric Gagne, Los Angeles: 20-of-20 on saves, 13 hits, 52 Ks in 30 innings.

4. Shaun Chacon, Colorado: 8-2, 3.17 ERA and he pitches in Coors Field.

5. John Smoltz, Atlanta: 22 of 23 saves, 0.84 ERA. Still throwing 96.

AL Cy Young

1. Esteban Loaiza, Chicago White Sox: 8-2, 1.90 ERA and the biggest surprise on this list.

2. Jamie Moyer, Seattle: 9-2, 3.21 ERA and living proof that you don't have to throw hard to win.

3. Mark Mulder, Oakland: Best of Oakland's Big Three so far.

4. David Wells, N.Y. Yankees: 8-2 with a 3.36 ERA and tell-all book.

5. Eddie Guardado, Minnesota: Has converted all 17 save opportunities. Has a 1.75 ERA.