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Tackling five different awards requires taking five different approaches. So with a heads-up that all numbers below are current through Labor Day, September 4, here's how it's going to work.

Comeback Player of the Year

It's only fair to limit the scope to experienced players who've been on the field for the whole season. Only non-rookies are eligible, and they must have either 400 plate appearances or 100 innings pitched.

After that, players' 2016 WAR—wins above replacement, which in this case will be the average of players' WAR at Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs—is subtracted from their 2017 WAR to reveal who's reversed their fortunes the most. Check out full results here.

Finally, it becomes a matter of separating true comebacks from breakouts (e.g., Tommy Pham and Luis Severino) and other players going from good to great (e.g., Giancarlo Stanton).

Manager of the Year

Narratives guide the Manager of the Year voting, but there's a general rule of thumb that lends itself to a statistical argument: Which manager's team surpassed expectations the most?

Preseason win projections from Baseball Prospectus' famed PECOTA system (via Will Leitch of Sports on Earth) will be compared to teams' actual win projections based on their current winning percentages. The AL and NL managers overseeing the biggest differences get the nod. Full results are here.

Rookie of the Year

All rookies with either 100 plate appearances or 50 innings pitched are eligible. The leaders are whoever has the highest WAR average. Full results are here.

Cy Young

Any pitcher with more than 100 innings is eligible. Then it's once again about the highest WAR averages. Full results are here.

Most Valuable Player

The umbrella of eligible players covers hitters with over 400 plate appearances and pitchers with more than 100 innings. The players with the highest WAR averages are the ones to beat. Full results are here.