Four awards, three teams.

The finalists for National League MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year and Manager of the Year all come from just three clubs. ESPN.com's team reporters -- Jesse Rogers (Chicago Cubs), Doug Padilla (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Eddie Matz (Washington Nationals) -- make each contender's case.

MVP

Kris Bryant, Cubs: The case for Bryant is simple: He was arguably the best offensive player on the best team in the game. Plus, he played more than adequate defense in both the infield and outfield. He did everything well in 2016 including running the bases. He was third in the NL in home runs, sixth in RBIs, 19th in batting average and fourth in OPS. But in this particular case, wins above replacement might tell his story best. He led the league with a 7.7 mark and was the only NL player in the top 10 in that category. -- Rogers

Daniel Murphy, Nationals: If the MVP were based solely on offense, then it'd be hard not to give it to Murphy. In his first year in D.C., he led the NL in slugging (.595) and OPS (.985), yet somehow managed to finish with the second-lowest strikeout rate (9.8 percent). In other words, he almost never had a bad at-bat. But it was a different story in the field, where Murphy accounted for minus-nine runs saved, worst among NL second basemen. -- Matz

Corey Seager, Dodgers: Robust offensive production and solid defense, all at the premium position of shortstop, put Seager among the top performers in the National League. That it all took place in his first full season in the majors made Seager's output that much more impressive. Seager was the Dodgers' steadiest offensive performer during a division-title winning season, batting .308 with an .877 OPS while hitting 26 home runs. And much of that production came out of the No. 2 hole, marking yet another challenge for the 22-year-old. In perhaps the biggest sign of just how steady Seager was this season, the left-handed hitter had 17 regular-season games of three hits or more, collecting at least one in each month, and then had one more during the playoffs. -- Padilla

Cy Young

Kyle Hendricks, Cubs: Some might find his major league leading 2.13 ERA deceiving since he pitched in front of the best defense in baseball, but when you consider he gave up the lightest contact, maybe it was the defense which benefited from him and not the other way around. His consistency since early May sets him apart from the other two candidates who both had stinkers along the way. Not Hendricks, who gave up four earned runs just once after May 17. That happened in his final start after the ERA title -- and the Cubs' division title -- was locked up. His case rests on that consistency and minuscule ERA. -- Rogers

Jon Lester, Cubs: The difference between Lester and Hendricks comes down to reliance. Joe Maddon trusted Lester in the biggest of moments as evidenced by him starting Game 1 in each postseason round and relieving Hendricks in Game 7. But this is a regular-season award, and in the second half there was no one better in baseball in limiting damage than Lester. He was 10-1 with a 1.76 ERA after the All-Star break, stranding runners in scoring position at an amazing rate. Some may call that luck, but that was simply making the right pitch at the right time. Overall, his 19 wins ranked second in the NL, as did his ERA, while his WHIP ranked third and batting average against fourth. -- Rogers

Max Scherzer, Nationals: It has been nearly 20 years since an NL Cy Young winner allowed at least 30 home runs (Randy Johnson, 1999). This season, Scherzer served up 31 gopher balls, tied for most in the NL. Despite that, the 2013 AL Cy Young winner should become the sixth pitcher to win the award in both leagues because A) he led the majors in WHIP and whiffs (his 284 K's were only 83 fewer than Hendricks and Lester combined), B) he led the NL in innings, and C) he was the NL's only 20-game winner. With that kind of dominance, voters should have no problem looking past the long balls. -- Matz

Rookie of the Year

Kenta Maeda, Dodgers: Taking away the Rookie of the Year award from teammate Seager will prove to be a difficult task, but Maeda still provided huge benefits for the Dodgers in his debut season. Perhaps no major leaguer was tasked with a greater challenge than Maeda, who had to replace Zack Greinke as the Dodgers' primary right-handed starter. A former ace in Japan, he proved himself here with 16 victories, a 3.48 ERA and a 1.139 WHIP. With the Arizona Diamondbacks, Greinke had 13 victories, a 4.37 ERA and a 1.273 WHIP. -- Padilla

Corey Seager, Dodgers: The fact that Seager is also in the MVP hunt should end any argument over his rookie award worthiness. For those still not convinced: In his rookie year, Seager was second in the NL in hits with 193 and fifth in runs at 105. That's not just among rookies, that is among all NL players this past season. No other NL rookie was within 63 hits of Seager or closer than 34 runs. And Seager's 321 total bases were fourth overall in the NL, with no other rookie coming within 110 of him. Seager's 26 home runs were also a record for a Dodgers shortstop in a single season. -- Padilla

Trea Turner, Nationals: Of the 28 NL players who finished with a WAR of at least 3.5, all but one of them played at least 130 games. That one? Turner, who appeared in just 73 contests. Project that value over the 157 games that Corey Seager played, and you get a WAR of 7.5 that would've been well above Seager's 6.1 and second only to Bryant in the NL. In other words, if Turner -- who hit .342 with 13 homers and 33 steals in less than half a season -- had been in the show back in April, the ROY race would've been a humdinger. -- Matz

Manager of the Year

Dusty Baker, Nationals: The case for Baker joining Bobby Cox and Tony La Russa as baseball's only four-time MOY winners is a strong one. The 67-year-old skipper took over a Nationals squad that disappointed in 2015 (83-79) and transformed them into a 95-game winner that cruised to the NL East title. And he did it despite a historically huge drop-off from reigning MVP Bryce Harper and an injury-plagued season from All-Star hurler Stephen Strasburg. Baker also deserves credit for getting the most out of a bullpen that didn't look great on paper but finished with a 3.37 ERA, second-lowest in the majors. -- Matz

Joe Maddon, Cubs: Maddon's task was different in 2016 from 2015 when he won the award. This time around, he had to deal with high expectations for a franchise which hadn't won a championship in 108 years. That's a challenging combination, but Maddon navigated through it, beginning with the idea of embracing the pressure instead of deflecting it. And once again he set the tone for young players like Javier Baez and Willson Contreras to succeed. Both play the game with some flair, which can lead to mistakes. Instead of coaching that out of them, Maddon tried to harness it. His handling of the Cubs' only slump, right before the All-Star break, was a a testament to staying the course. Rest, not table-turning, was needed. The Cubs got some at the All-Star break and took off again. -- Rogers

Dave Roberts, Dodgers: Joe Maddon's Cubs won the World Series, but the Manager of the Year award was based on the regular season, giving Roberts solid footing for the honor. Roberts oversaew a roster that had 28 different players hit the disabled list and 15 different pitchers start games. Roberts' team even managed to gain ground on first place while ace Clayton Kershaw was on the disabled list. And he became just the second Dodgers rookie manager to guide the club into the postseason after Tommy Lasorda in 1977. Roberts' best work, though, might have come in managing a bullpen that had just one pitcher in a set role all season in closer Kenley Jansen. Dodgers relievers might have led baseball with 590 2/3 innings, but they still managed to post the best ERA in the game at a collective 3.35. -- Padilla