2008 Central League Most Valuable Player Award

The 2008 Central League Most Valuable Player Award went to Alex Ramirez of the Yomiuri Giants. He was the first foreigner to be named MVP of the Central League since fellow Venezuelan Roberto Petagine won in 2001. Ramirez had been signed as a free agent by the Giants after spending several fine years with Yakult. He hit .319/.373/.617 in 2008 and led the Central League with 125 RBI; he was second in slugging and second in home runs, as his 45 were one behind leader Shuichi Murata.

Ramirez easily won, taking 166 of 199 first-place votes. With 900 total points, he was well ahead of teammates Michihiro Ogasawara (381) and Seth Greisinger (303), the runners-up.

Voting Results

Finish	Name	Team	Position	1st Place Votes	2nd Place Votes	3rd Place Votes	Points
1	Alex Ramirez	Yomiuri Giants	Outfielder	166	22	4	900
2	Michihiro Ogasawara	Yomiuri Giants	1st Baseman	22	76	43	381
3	Seth Greisinger	Yomiuri Giants	Pitcher	6	68	69	303
4	Seiichi Uchikawa	Yokohama BayStars	1st Baseman	2	9	19	56
5	Kyuji Fujikawa	Hanshin Tigers	Pitcher	1	6	9	32
6	Tomoaki Kanemoto	Hanshin Tigers	Outfielder	0	5	11	26
7	Shuichi Murata	Yokohama BayStars	3rd Baseman	2	2	2	18
8	Shinnosuke Abe	Yomiuri Giants	Catcher	0	3	44	13
	Colby Lewis	Hiroshima Carp	Pitcher	0	3	4	13
10	Tetsuya Yamaguchi	Yomiuri Giants	Pitcher	0	2	5	11