First Half Awards
With the three-day distraction also known as the All-Star Break almost over, it's time to get back into the full-swing baseball schedule. But before we do that, there is plenty of baseball from the first half to look back on.
A.J.'s First Half Awards
AL MVP
David Ortiz, DH, Boston RedSox- Nobody means more to his team than Big Papi. There are plenty of websites proclaiming Jermaine Dye or Jim Thome as MVP--but it rarely if ever works if your team has two legitimate MVP canidates. The writers may not be able to decide who is more valuable (Dye or Thome), and split fairly evenly...giving Big Papi enough space to finally lock up his MVP.
NL MVP
Nomar Garciaparra, 1B, L.A. Dodgers- The popular, if not unanimous choice, is Albert Pujols. It is, however, my opinion that the Cardinals are on the verge of putting it all together (or the Reds are about to fall apart...), meaning that there are not likely to be very many meaningful games in St. Louis in September. This is also the case with David Wright. The media attention will all be focused on the major races...and the NL West should be a race. I may be wrong, and I may just love to root for the underdog, but could Nomar's bat be the difference in the NL West in September? If it is, and the Dodgers win, look out. Vladimir Guerrero got hot at the right time in 2004 and captured his AL MVP that way.
AL Cy Young
Johan Santana, LHP, Minnesota Twins- Alright, I'll admit it. My gut, heart, head, EVERYTHING says Francsico Liriano should win. So why pick Johan? I just can't believe that Liriano is going to be preforming at this level the rest of the way. Something HAS to happen...second time around the league, maybe he has some trouble? Maybe he runs out of gas at the end of a long year (even though they kept him in the bullpen to start the year to keep this from being an issue)? I can't just hand it to the rookie. By now, it should be known that the media is in love with Johan Santana and if he preforms the way he has been (leading the league in strikeouts with a 2.95 ERA) he has to be the favorite.
NL Cy Young
Jason Schmidt, RHP, San Francisco Giants- The popular choice is Brandon Webb. Both Webb (2.65) and Schmidt (2.78) are preforming at high levels right now--but who is more likely to "give?" I say Webb. Webb's heavy groundball style is more prone to being exposed than Schmidt's power. Granted, Jason is no longer the K-artist he once was...he still stands a better chance of avoiding a big slump that would damage his numbers. Bronson Arroyo, a personal favorite, is left out of this conversation beacuse it appears that he is beginning to slow (his last few starts have been rough--seeing his ERA ride from 2.31 to 3.12) perhaps because of the league catching on to his style and pitches.
AL Rookie of the Year
Francisco Liriano, LHP, Minnesota Twins- He has been simply dominant. Even with him having a few rough starts down the stretch, it's not hard to imagine him finishing as one of the top five starting pitchers in the American League. While I feel that Johan will still capture the Cy, Francisco can not be denied of the Rookie of the Year.
NL Rookie of the Year
Dan Uggla, 2B, Florida Marlins- Everybody in America loves the underdog. For a Rule V guy to go from going to camp unsure of having a spot on a major league roster to the All-Star game is impressive. He ranks second in the majors only to Chase Utley in OPS as a second baseman.
AL Comeback Player of the Year
Jim Thome, DH, Chicago WhiteSox- Is there any question? The guy went from having an injury plagued year in which he hit .207-7-30 in 59 games to having 30 home runs (along with a .298 average, and 77 RBI) by the All-Star break. He could win this award without going yard one more time this year.
NL Comeback Player of the Year
Nomar Garciaparra, 1B, L.A. Dodgers- I don't think I need to go over the Nomar Garciaparra story. The guys battled back from all sorts of doubt and injuries and issues to being one of the top offensive players in Major League Baseball. He has logged a .358 average to date...just like the Nomar of old!
AL Manager of the Year
Jim Leyland, Detroit Tigers- Sure, the Tigers have some outstanding young talent--including some of the best young arms in the game--but Leyland's attitude and personality has helped blend this primarily veteran club with the young talents that they have and create the best team in baseball. Sure, I thought the Tigers would be solid...but who saw this coming?
NL Manager of the Year
Joe Girardi, Florida Marlins- It appears that the Marlins are actually going to AVOID 100 losses this year. If you had told me that they would avoid 100 losses at the beginning of the year, I'd have called you crazy. Good job by Joe not only in winning some games but it appears that his influence on these young guys has made a majorly positive impact.
A.J.'s First Half Awards
AL MVP
David Ortiz, DH, Boston RedSox- Nobody means more to his team than Big Papi. There are plenty of websites proclaiming Jermaine Dye or Jim Thome as MVP--but it rarely if ever works if your team has two legitimate MVP canidates. The writers may not be able to decide who is more valuable (Dye or Thome), and split fairly evenly...giving Big Papi enough space to finally lock up his MVP.
NL MVP
Nomar Garciaparra, 1B, L.A. Dodgers- The popular, if not unanimous choice, is Albert Pujols. It is, however, my opinion that the Cardinals are on the verge of putting it all together (or the Reds are about to fall apart...), meaning that there are not likely to be very many meaningful games in St. Louis in September. This is also the case with David Wright. The media attention will all be focused on the major races...and the NL West should be a race. I may be wrong, and I may just love to root for the underdog, but could Nomar's bat be the difference in the NL West in September? If it is, and the Dodgers win, look out. Vladimir Guerrero got hot at the right time in 2004 and captured his AL MVP that way.
AL Cy Young
Johan Santana, LHP, Minnesota Twins- Alright, I'll admit it. My gut, heart, head, EVERYTHING says Francsico Liriano should win. So why pick Johan? I just can't believe that Liriano is going to be preforming at this level the rest of the way. Something HAS to happen...second time around the league, maybe he has some trouble? Maybe he runs out of gas at the end of a long year (even though they kept him in the bullpen to start the year to keep this from being an issue)? I can't just hand it to the rookie. By now, it should be known that the media is in love with Johan Santana and if he preforms the way he has been (leading the league in strikeouts with a 2.95 ERA) he has to be the favorite.
NL Cy Young
Jason Schmidt, RHP, San Francisco Giants- The popular choice is Brandon Webb. Both Webb (2.65) and Schmidt (2.78) are preforming at high levels right now--but who is more likely to "give?" I say Webb. Webb's heavy groundball style is more prone to being exposed than Schmidt's power. Granted, Jason is no longer the K-artist he once was...he still stands a better chance of avoiding a big slump that would damage his numbers. Bronson Arroyo, a personal favorite, is left out of this conversation beacuse it appears that he is beginning to slow (his last few starts have been rough--seeing his ERA ride from 2.31 to 3.12) perhaps because of the league catching on to his style and pitches.
AL Rookie of the Year
Francisco Liriano, LHP, Minnesota Twins- He has been simply dominant. Even with him having a few rough starts down the stretch, it's not hard to imagine him finishing as one of the top five starting pitchers in the American League. While I feel that Johan will still capture the Cy, Francisco can not be denied of the Rookie of the Year.
NL Rookie of the Year
Dan Uggla, 2B, Florida Marlins- Everybody in America loves the underdog. For a Rule V guy to go from going to camp unsure of having a spot on a major league roster to the All-Star game is impressive. He ranks second in the majors only to Chase Utley in OPS as a second baseman.
AL Comeback Player of the Year
Jim Thome, DH, Chicago WhiteSox- Is there any question? The guy went from having an injury plagued year in which he hit .207-7-30 in 59 games to having 30 home runs (along with a .298 average, and 77 RBI) by the All-Star break. He could win this award without going yard one more time this year.
NL Comeback Player of the Year
Nomar Garciaparra, 1B, L.A. Dodgers- I don't think I need to go over the Nomar Garciaparra story. The guys battled back from all sorts of doubt and injuries and issues to being one of the top offensive players in Major League Baseball. He has logged a .358 average to date...just like the Nomar of old!
AL Manager of the Year
Jim Leyland, Detroit Tigers- Sure, the Tigers have some outstanding young talent--including some of the best young arms in the game--but Leyland's attitude and personality has helped blend this primarily veteran club with the young talents that they have and create the best team in baseball. Sure, I thought the Tigers would be solid...but who saw this coming?
NL Manager of the Year
Joe Girardi, Florida Marlins- It appears that the Marlins are actually going to AVOID 100 losses this year. If you had told me that they would avoid 100 losses at the beginning of the year, I'd have called you crazy. Good job by Joe not only in winning some games but it appears that his influence on these young guys has made a majorly positive impact.
Labels: 2006 Season
AJ Chapin at 2:10 PM
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