Corey Seager's emergence keys Dodgers run

Corey Seager is on fire right now, and is putting potentially one of the best rookie seasons in Dodgers history. He will likely be named a National League All-Star later on Tuesday, but his season has been so much better than that.

He leads the team in runs scored (57), hits (100), doubles (20), triples (three), home runs (17), RBI (41, tied), total bases (177), batting average (.305), on-base percentage (.363), slugging percentage (.540), and OPS (.903). Seager, even on a team with Adrian Gonzalez, has become the everyday guy, also leading the team in games (84), starts (78), plate appearances (361) and defensive innings (708).

Dave Roberts on Corey Seager: "Yeah, he's our best player."

— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughTimes) July 5, 2016

He had unreal expectations entering the season as the consensus top prospect in baseball, but he has handled it all with an uncommon ease.

Seager struggled a little bit in April, and entering May 7 was hitting only .243/.317/.383. In 56 games since, he's hitting .335/.386/.615, and the Dodgers are 34-22 during that span.

Perhaps what is most surprising is the power surge. We knew he would hit doubles, but after averaging 18 home runs the last three years in the minors, topping out at 20, he already has 17 home runs this season.

If you said before the season that Seager would hit 17 home runs for the entire 2016 season, I would have taken that in a heartbeat.

His 40 extra-base hits are just two behind the LA Dodgers record through 85 team games, set by Eric Karros (1999) and Shawn Green (2002) in a higher offensive era. Seager is on pace for 76 extra-base hits, something accomplished only 13 times in Dodgers history, five since moving to Los Angeles.

Seager isn't just getting talked about as a National League Rookie of the Year candidate, which would be the first for the Dodgers in 20 years. Seager is a legitimate MVP candidate, too.

He is second among NL position players in FanGraphs WAR (3.9), fourth including pitchers. Seager is fourth among NL position players in Baseball-Reference WAR (3.5), tied for fifth including pitchers. Seager was ranked sixth in the hypothetical midseason NL MVP ballot of Jeff Passan at Yahoo Sports.

Seager carries a 17-game hitting streak into Tuesday night's game against the Orioles, hitting .414/.461/.671 with eight doubles, two triples, two home runs and nine multi-hit games during that span.

It's the longest streak in the National League this season, and the third-longest by an LA Dodgers rookie, in the latter trailing only Tommy Davis (20 games in 1960) and Bill Sudakis (18 games in 1969). Seager's streak is the longest by any Dodger since Hanley Ramirez had a 19-game hit streak in 2013.

Game info

Time: 7:10 p.m. PT

TV: SportsNet LA