One man’s one vote on the upcoming baseball awards. No exit polling required.
Best Player Who Mattered: Just a little sharper definition on the Most Valuable Player award. Kris Bryant’s versatility gives him a slight edge over teammate Anthony Rizzo in the National League, although Dexter Fowler will be undervalued in the actual voting. David Ortiz was the only AL player who compiled an OPS over 1.000 and led the league in doubles and slugging percentage and tied for first in RBI. If a pitcher can win it, why not a DH?
Best Player Who Didn’t Matter: Mike Trout in the AL, Nolan Arenado in the NL. They shined through their incompetent surroundings. Call it the Ernie Banks Award.
Cy Young Award: Max Scherzer, leader in wins and strikeouts, gets the NL version by a tick over Kyle Hendricks. In the AL, it’s Zach Britton, the Baltimore closer, unless you have a problem with perfect. He was 47 for 47 in saves.
Rookie of the Year: The Dodgers’ Kyle Seager was headed for it anyway and clinched it when Colorado’s Trevor Story went down. In the AL, the Tigers got Michael Fulmer from the Mets for Yoenis Cespedes, and Fulmer had a 3.06 ERA in Detroit’s rotation.
Manager of the Year: Everyone considers Dave Roberts the shoo-in because he handled the Dodgers’ chaos so efficiently, but the Mets’ Terry Collins endured severe wreckage and still got to the playoffs, if only for one night. Dusty Baker was pretty good for the Nationals, too. Cleveland’s Terry Francona never had Michael Brantley, his best player, and then lost two starting pitchers, but never blinked, so his team didn’t.
Executive of the Year: The Rangers’ Jon Daniels was brilliant, again, at the trade deadline. As for the NL, they might name this award after Theo Epstein some day, although Jed Hoyer is the nominal GM for the Cubs.
Comeback Player: The Rangers’ Ian Desmond improved his OPS by 108 points and learned a new position (center field) as well. Joe Blanton, the Dodgers’ setup man, gave up 55 hits in 80 innings, just two years after retirement.
Breakout Player: At 23, Cleveland’s Jose Ramirez hit .312 with 46 doubles and carried it into the postseason. Giants refugee Adam Duvall slammed 33 home runs with 103 RBI for Cincinnati and gets the NL honor over Jake Lamb (Arizona) and Jonathan Villar (Milwaukee).
Mis-Manager of the Year: Robin Ventura of the White Sox gets that AL distinction, which coincided with a pink slip. It’s hard to figure how Cincinnati’s Bryan Price keeps his post.
Execu-Stiff of the Year: Honestly, Oakland’s Billy Beane makes it impossible not to pile on. He should get a Series share from the Cubs for Addison Russell alone. In the NL, Arizona’s Dave Stewart has already been fired, primarily for trading a boatload of prospects to Atlanta for Shelby Miller.
Comedown Player: Dallas Keuchel, last year’s Cy Young Award winner, went 9-12 with a 4.55 ERA for Houston. In the NL, former MVP Andrew McCutchen never got it in gear, with a .766 OPS for Pittsburgh.
Best Trade: Mark Trumbo led the AL with 47 home runs. Baltimore got him from Seattle in exchange for Steve Clevenger, a backup, hate-tweeting catcher. In the NL, Milwaukee gave up minor leaguer Cy Sneed to Houston and got shortstop Jonathan Villar, who hit .285 and led the league with 62 steals.
Best Free Agent: Daniel Murphy basically recreated October of 2015 for six months after he signed with Washington, which passed the Mets to win the NL East. Oakland signed Rich Hill for $6 million, and he was brilliant for the A’s and Dodgers.
Worst Free Agent: Zack Greinke was part of the mudslide in Arizona, after he signed a $206 million deal. Detroit got only 19 starts and nine wins out of Jordan Zimmermann before he broke down.
Injury of the Year: Third baseman Mike Moustakas (torn ACL) played only 24 games for Kansas City. The Cardinals’ Matt Holliday (broken thumb) was out from early August to late September when they needed a wild-card boost.
Early line for 2017: Indians over Cubs, in six.
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