Ranking the 5 best St. Louis Cardinals MVP winners in team history

5. Dizzy Dean (1934)

Dizzy Dean pitched for the Cardinals from 1930 until 1937. He was then traded to the Cubs, where his stats are much less admirable. During his time with the Cardinals, he pitched in 273 games, 1,731 innings, sported a 2.99 ERA, a 3.22 FIP, and threw 141 complete games.

During the 1934 season, he won 30 games (has never been replicated), threw 311.2 innings (interestingly enough, not his career high), had a 2.66 ERA, pitched 24 complete games, threw 7 shutouts, sprinkled in 7 saves, and had 195 strikeouts. While strikeouts are supreme in today's game, there is still a lot of respect for innings totals. To be able to throw 24 complete games AND have 7 saves is quite impressive.

Dizzy Dean's 1934 season was one in which he won an MVP. He could have also won the prestigious award in 1935 and 1936, seasons in which he was as dominant and reliable, but he instead finished in second place in both years. Dizzy Dean was second in WAR for all players behind only Lou Gehrig, but he racked up the most WAR of any other pitchers in the majors. His ERA, win-loss %, strikeouts per nine, complete games, shutouts, strikeouts, and FIP were all top-10 in the majors. Even for his time, he had one of the best seasons a pitcher could have.

4. Stan Musial (1946)

In 1945, Stan Musial served in the military, thus missing that season. He came back in 1946 after serving in the Navy to put together one of his best seasons ever. Despite not playing baseball for an entire year and fighting in the Second World War, Musial was able to put up numbers in the 1946 season that are hard to replicate.

Stan the Man had a slash line of .365/.434/.587 for an OPS+ of 183. Not only did he lead the National League in about a dozen major stats, but he also led all of the majors in nearly a half dozen major stats. Musial's '46 season featured him eclipsing 100 RBIs, 15 home runs, and a 1.000 on-base plus slugging percentage for the first time in his career. He would go on to surpass those numbers multiple times late in his career.

Musial led all of the majors in categories such as hits, triples, total bases, games played, and at-bats. He was second in WAR among all position players and batting average. He was top 10 in OBP, SLG, OPS, runs scored, doubles, and RBIs. In addition to his league-leading stats, Stan Musial led the National League in stats such as runs, doubles, batting average, slugging percentage, OPS, and OPS+.

For as good of a season as 1946 was for Stan Musial, it also wasn't his best. That was yet to come.

3. Albert Pujols (2009)

Recent Cardinals fans can look fondly upon the years of the 2000s thanks to one man in particular: Albert Pujols. Perhaps the best right-handed batter in baseball history, Pujols was dominant from the moment he made his MLB debut. In his 11 seasons in St. Louis, Pujols received MVP votes in 10 of them, winning three times and finishing second in 4 other seasons. 2009 was the best of them all, however.

In 2009, Albert slashed .327/.443/.658 for an OPS+ of 189 across 701 plate appearances. He hit a league-leading 47 home runs and also drove in a whopping 135 runners. He walked at nearly double the rate that he struck out; Pujols also stole 16 bases that year, a career-high. Despite Pujols's struggles in the postseason that year, his regular season was stellar on the field on both sides of the ball.

Pujols led the league in WAR, slugging percentage, home runs, runs scored, and total bases. He was also top-3 in batting average, on-base percentage, and runs batted in.

In addition to his MVP trophy that year, Pujols also walked away with the Hank Aaron Award, Fielding Bible Award for first basemen, and a Silver Slugger trophy. Not only was Albert able to perform offensively, but he also provided a stout glove at first and a personality to boot. Albert Pujols graced Cardinals fans with some amazing seasons, but his 2009 season stands above the rest.

2. Bob Gibson (1968)

Perhaps the greatest pitcher in Cardinals' history, Bob Gibson had his best season in 1968. Gibson helped lead the Cardinals to a World Series championship in 1967, and he followed up a World Series season with an MVP season of his own the very next season. Gibson played 17 seasons for the Cardinals altogether and pitched admirably in the playoffs throughout his career.

In 1968, Gibson had a 1.12 ERA (league-leading) and a 1.77 FIP (league-leading) across 304.2 innings. His 13 shutouts, 268 strikeouts, 0.853 WHIP, and 258 ERA+ also led the league. Simply put, Gibson was absolutely dominant that season. Gibson pitched through the 8th inning in 32 of his 34 starts, and he even sprinkled in 5 extra inning outings. He was a workhorse who shut down batters every game he pitched in.

Gibson led all of the majors in WAR that year for both pitchers and hitters. In addition to his league-leading ERA, FIP, and shutouts, Gibson finished the season second in WHIP and complete games and top-5 in strikeouts and innings.

In the playoffs that year, Gibson pitched in 3 games, all complete games. He gave up only 5 runs across 27 innings for a 1.67 ERA. He also struck out 35 batters and walked only 4. In that World Series, Gibson pitched in Games 1, 4, and 7. Despite the Cardinals losing the series, Gibson sure did his part to help the team win.

1. Stan Musial (1948)

Any one of Stan Musial's MVP seasons could have been chosen in the top 5; however, his 1948 season stands above the rest. The third award in 6 seasons for Musial made him the first player to ever win National League MVP three times. Musial is perhaps the greatest Cardinal to ever play the game, and his stats, performances, and name will stand alone in Cardinal lore for years to come.

In 1948, Stan the Man slashed .376/.450/.702 for an OPS+ of 200 across 155 games and 698 plate appearances. He led the National League in total bases, hits, runs, RBIs, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS, doubles, and triples. He also walked twice as much as he struck out, showing how tough of an at-bat he was for pitchers.

Musial led all of baseball in WAR, slugging percentage, hits, total bases, doubles, and triples. He was also top-5 in batting average, on-base percentage, and RBIs.

Musial's 22-year career in St. Louis won't be matched again. His off-field accomplishments were as good if not better than his on-field performance. Musial served in the military during World War II, was an advisor for Lyndon B. Johnson, supported the removal of the color barrier in baseball, and refused to endorse tobacco products after he realized the dangers involved in smoking. Musial was a class act both during his tenure and after playing. His 1948 season stands above the rest in his career and others in St. Louis history.