2010 MLB Horse Collar Awards
An unusual and surprising MLB season is in the books. That means it’s time for my annual awards. These are mostly self-explanatory. For further explanation as to how I choose the winners, see last year’s MLB awards blog. These are basically the same as last season in structure with just a few additions. Just for fun I decided to dedicate some of my awards (in the same way that the award for the league’s best pitcher is dedicated to Cy Young). The only major addition to the awards this year is actually a bit dicey. I’m taking the brave step of handing out some defensive awards this season. Take those with a grain or two (or 1,000) of salt. All of the other awards are pretty much the same as last year.
As for the process of picking the awards this season, there was one major difference: it was much, much harder. I couldn’t believe it. Last season there were many awards which were not even close. This season I was tempted to go with a tie on every other award. Not only did this make the entire process more difficult, it also made it less enjoyable because I just didn’t have as much conviction in my selections.
But enough waxing and whining. On with it.
Traditional Awards
American League Most Valuable Player
Winner: Josh Hamilton (LF-Texas)
Runner-up: Miguel Cabrera (1B-Detroit)
Third Place: (Tie) Jose Bautista (RF-Toronto)/Paul Konerko (1B-Chicago White Sox)
Comments: This one was essentially a tossup. Bautista and Konerko were both good choices for 3rd and I ended up splitting it between them. I did not want to split the 1st place award between Hamilton and Cabrera. The voters will likely be swayed by the “human element” story and vote for Hamilton, but that didn’t factor into my decision at all. Cabrera and Hamilton were both worthy of the award. I tried not to have any 1st place ties, so I had to choose one and I went with Hamilton. He led the AL in batting, Slugging, OPS, and Runs Created per 27 outs. Hamilton’s late season rib injury was a big part of what made this such a hard decision. That threw a wrench in the system because Hamilton ended up playing 28 games less than Cabrera. In the end I did not think it was enough to cost him the award.
Defense was not really a factor here other than to say that Hamilton plays a tougher position in the field. Cabrera may actually be underrated defensively, while Hamilton is likely overrated in that department. Cabrera is not a bad first baseman. Hamilton is not an elite defensive outfielder. To begin with, he’s primarily a left fielder now and not a center fielder. And while he’s known for making diving catches, that doesn’t always equate to great defense.
In contrast to the writers who vote for this award, I only use the issue of playing for a winning team or a contender as a sort of tie-breaker, and so Hamilton helping lead the Rangers to the World Series was part of what put him on top for me. While Hamilton’s play in the postseason overall was a bit disappointing (11 for 58, .190/.319/.466/.784), he won the ALCS MVP, going 7 for 20 with a double, 4 homers, 7 RBI, 6 runs, 3 SB in 3 attempts, 8 walks and only 4 K’s. And for me, beating the Yankees in the ALCS was the biggest achievement in Texas Rangers history. One other factor that pushed Hamilton on top for me was his numbers in some of the so-called “clutch” areas. Josh Hamilton, good readers, led the AL with a .369 batting average with runners in scoring position (min. 100 PA), and he was 2nd in the AL with a .379 batting average with RISP and 2 out (min. 50 PA).
National League Most Valuable Player
Winner: Albert Pujols (1B-St. Louis)
Runner-up: Joey Votto (1B-Cincinnati)
Third Place: Carlos Gonzalez (LF-Colorado)
Comments: This was almost the exact same situation as the AL. Carlos Gonzalez had a tremendous year. He was a very solid 3rd, finishing 3rd in OPS, 3rd in RC, and 3rd in RC/27. The top spot had to go to either Votto or Pujols. My first reaction was to go with Votto, as he finished 2nd in the NL in batting, and led the league in OBP, SLG, OPS, and RC/27. He also led the Reds to their first division title since 1995, outlasting Pujols’ Cardinals in the NL Central.
That seems like a slam-dunk case for giving the award to Votto. But consider Al’s numbers. He was 6th in batting, 2nd in OBP, 3rd in SLG, 2nd in OPS, 2nd in RC/27, and he led the NL in Runs Created. He also led the NL in homers, RBI, runs, extra base hits, times on base, intentional walks, and AB/HR. He was 2nd in total bases and 2nd in walks. He was 10th in the power/speed stat and (amazingly) 9th in AB/K. Pujols and Votto were basically 1 or 2 in many of the more popular (but not that easy to understand) sabermetric categories. Pujols was tops in the NL in WAR (Wins Above Replacement) among all players, including pitchers, and he was also #1 in WAR with defense taken out of the equation.
While Votto’s OPS was 13 points higher than Pujols, when the home parks are taken into consideration, they had nearly identical numbers (Adjusted OPS). Both players were excellent in the “clutch” categories. Pujols gets the edge in defense. Votto is an average fielding first baseman, while Pujols is (in my opinion) the best in the NL and perhaps the game. In the end I felt like this was as close to a tossup as the AL situation. I gave the nod to Pujols based on his overall excellence in power, contact, batting eye, power/speed combo, and defense.
American League Cy Young
Winner: Felix Hernandez (SP-Seattle)
Runner-up: Jered Weaver (SP-Anaheim)
Third Place: (Tie) Clay Buchholz (SP-Boston)/David Price (SP-Tampa Bay)
Comments: I went into this one expecting Felix Hernandez to be an easy winner, but it didn’t turn out that way. There were just so many good candidates this season. While I pay attention to the win-loss record of a pitcher, it isn’t one of the main things I look at because it just doesn’t normally represent how well a guy pitched in an accurate way. Thus, it doesn’t bother me at all that my top 2 AL guys each went 13-12 on the season.
There were about 8 solid candidates for the AL Cy Young, which is pretty ridiculous. A case could be made for Hernandez, Weaver, Price, Buchholz, Trevor Cahill, Cliff Lee, Jon Lester, or Justin Verlander. In the end I narrowed the field down to the 4 listed above (Hernandez, Weaver, Buchholz, and Price) and eventually went with King Felix. He led the AL in ERA, innings pitched, Quality Starts, Quality Start Percentage, batting average against, OPS against, and WAR for pitchers. He was 2nd in WHIP and 2nd in K’s. He was 3rd in Complete Games, OBP against, and Slugging against. He was tied for 3rd in Shutouts. He was also 7th in K/BB and K/9. While other pitchers were better than Hernandez in certain areas, he had the best overall year.
National League Cy Young
Winner: Roy Halladay (SP-Philadelphia)
Runner-up: Adam Wainwright (SP-St. Louis)
Third Place: Ubaldo Jimenez (SP-Colorado)
Comments: Yet another impossible decision. There was a slew of worthy candidates for the NL Cy Young. There were 6 pitchers who deserved consideration: Josh Johnson, Adam Wainwright, Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt, Tim Hudson, and Ubaldo Jimenez. Eventually I narrowed the list down to the 3 listed above (Halladay, Wainwright, and Jimenez). You could make a very good case for any of those 3 winning the award. Jimenez had a ridiculous start to the season, and while he couldn’t keep up the pace, he still ended up having a splendid year. However, he wound up 8th in ERA, 10th in WHIP, and 7th in innings pitched.
It came down to Halladay or Wainwright. Wainwright excelled in almost all meaningful starting pitching categories, finishing in the top 5 in ERA, WHIP, K’s, IP, CG, SHO, QS, QS%, K/BB, Wins, H/9, and BB/9. He was also 10th in K/9. However, Halladay just had the stronger year. He was the toughest starting pitcher in the NL this season and the closest thing left to an old school ace. Doc Halladay led the NL in IP, K/BB, BB/9, and Wins. He was a few levels ahead of the rest of the league in Complete Games and Shutouts, tossing 9 CG (4 better than the next man) and 4 SHO (2 better than the next man). Halladay was 3rd in ERA, 2nd in WHIP, and 2nd in K’s. He was tied for 1st in QS and tied for 2nd in QS%. Doc was also at the top of almost all of the sabermetric stats. Halladay also pitched in a band box all season. He threw a perfect game against the Marlins. He helped lead the Phillies to a division title and then threw a no-hitter against the NL’s best hitting team in his first ever postseason appearance. It was close, but Halladay was the top pitcher.
American League Rolaids Relief
Winner: Rafael Soriano (Closer-Tampa Bay)
Runner-up: Joakim Soria (Closer-Kansas City)
Third Place: (Tie) Neftali Feliz (Closer-Texas)/Mariano Rivera (Closer-New York Yankees)
Comments: This was not an easy choice either. I went with Soriano in the end, as he led the AL in Saves, converting 45 of 48, helping lead the Rays to the AL East title ahead of the Yankees and Sox. Among AL pitchers with at least 20 IP, Soriano was 2nd in WHIP and 5th in ERA.
National League Rolaids Relief
Winner: Heath Bell (Closer-San Diego)
Runner-up: Brian Wilson (Closer-San Francisco)
Third Place: Billy Wagner (Closer-Atlanta)
Comments: I know I’m repeating myself, but this was a hard choice to make. It was really a 3-man race. In many ways, Billy Wagner had the most dominating season. Among NL pitchers with at least 40 IP, Wagner was 2nd in ERA, 5th in WHIP, 2nd in K/9, 3rd in batting average against, 5th in OBP against, 4th in SLG against, and 2nd in OPS against. However, due to a few mistakes by himself and by his defensive mates, Wagner was only 37 of 44 in save tries. That’s not so bad, but it wasn’t as good as the top 2 guys.
Brian Wilson led the NL in Saves with 48 and was 5th in ERA (min. 40 IP). He wound up being perhaps the most feared closer in the game, as he was simply automatic late in the year and in October, helping lead the G-Men to the world championship. However, despite the fact that Wilson’s Giants chased down and held off the Padres, Heath Bell deserved this award. He converted 47 of 50 save chances (94.0%) for the Padds (Wilson converted 48 of 53 for a 90.6% success rate). He also had a 6-1 record and was 7th in the NL in ERA.
American League Rookie of the Year
Winner: Neftali Feliz (Closer-Texas)
Runner-up: Austin Jackson (CF-Detroit)
Third Place: Brian Matusz (SP-Baltimore)
Comments: Finally an easy one. Neftali Feliz was the runaway winner, making 70 appearances and converting 40 of 43 save chances for the eventual AL champs. He had a 2.73 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP, while also averaging more than a strikeout per inning. Jackson had an okay season. Matusz finished 3rd by default.
National League Rookie of the Year
Winner: Buster Posey (C-San Francisco)
Runner-up: Jayson Heyward (RF-Atlanta)
Third Place: (Tie) Jaime Garica (SP-St. Louis)/John Axford (Closer-Milwaukee)
Comments: This one was very tough. It was particularly tough for me being a Braves fan. In the end there was just no escaping the conclusion that Posey was the answer. Early on it looked like Heyward was a sure thing, but he couldn’t keep up the pace of his hot start, and eventually several guys began to challenge him. Heyward was negatively affected by a thumb injury that caused him to miss time and limited his play throughout the rest of the year. To be sure, Heyward still wound up having a tremendous rookie season, hitting .277/.393/.456/.849 with 18 homers, 29 doubles, 5 triples, 72 RBI, and 91 walks. The walk totals and on-base numbers were particularly impressive. Heyward had by far and away the most walks of any NL rookie, and among NL rookies with at least 350 PA he was 1st in OBP and 2nd in OPS.
Posey didn’t even start the season in the big leagues, but once he arrived he thrived. Posey ended up hitting .305/.357/.505/.862 with 18 homers and 67 RBI. Among NL rookies with at least 350 PA, Posey was 2nd in batting, 2nd in OBP, 2nd in SLG, and 1st in OPS. He did all of this while playing catcher, working with one of the best pitching staffs in baseball. He finished 4th in the NL in Caught Stealing Percentage. And of course he helped lead the Giants to their first World Series title in San Francisco, going 17 for 59 in the postseason to hit .288 with a homer, 3 doubles, and 5 RBI.
Something should be said for Jaime Garcia, who had a super rookie season as a starting pitcher, going 13-8 with a 2.70 ERA. But Garcia’s year wasn’t good enough to place him ahead of the everyday players. Also, in almost complete anonymity, John Axford made 50 appearances for the Brew Crew, converting 24 of 27 save tries with 3 holds, an 8-2 record, 76 K over 58 innings, a 2.48 ERA, and a 1.19 WHIP. That’s pretty damn solid.
American League Manager of the Year
Winner: Ron Washington (Texas)
Runner-up: Ron Gardenhire (Minnesota)
Third Place: (Tie) Joe Girardi (New York Yankees)/Joe Maddon (Tampa Bay)
Comments: These awards are always a bit weird because you just don’t have much hard evidence. All you really have is the success/failure of the manager’s team. Outside of that you have to make like an old school manager and go with your gut. I actually did not want to give the award to Ron Washington. I like Washington because he seems like he’d be a fun guy to play for, and I was pulling for him because of the whole ya-yo thing. However, I don’t know if Washington is the best in-game manager. The Rangers were on TV a lot this season, and I found myself questioning Washington many times, particularly in the postseason. I do think he is a great day-to-day manager, like Bobby Cox. He’s a good leader. And he led the Rangers to their greatest season in history, so that counts for something. Plus, there really wasn’t another great candidate. Gardenhire did a tremendous job again, as the Twins were hit with a number of crushing injuries, yet they once again found a way to October. But I had to give this one to Washington, as his team surprised many (including me) by finally getting back to October and by actually doing something this time.
National League Manager of the Year
Winner: Bobby Cox (Atlanta)
Runner-up: Bruce Bochy (San Francisco)
Third Place: Bud Black (San Diego)
Comments: Are any biases at play here? Probably. But who cares? And my choice is totally legit anyway. Cox led an undermanned team to the postseason, as the Braves overcame a slow start, a late season slump, and a slew of crucial 2nd half injuries. Bruce Bochy is not my favorite manager. At times I thought the Giants succeeded in the playoffs in spite of Bochy more than because of anything good that he did. However, you can’t deny that he led a team with an underwhelming roster to the world championship. They did it by chasing down the Padres in the NL West. I still give Bud Black a lot of credit, even though the Padres choked down the stretch and missed the playoffs. The Padres had no business finishing over .500 this season, and yet they won 90 games, just 1 less than the Braves and Reds, and only 2 fewer than the eventual WS winning Giants.
I’m sure you’ve noticed that Dusty Baker is completely omitted from the top 3. It may seem that I’m being contradictory, giving Cox and Washington credit for being good day-to-day managers even if they aren’t necessarily the best in-game managers, and then not giving Dusty the same credit. This may be true. Baker has taken the Giants, Cubs, and Reds—three teams who had not had a lot of recent success before he arrived—to the postseason. The evidence is hard to dismiss. Baker should get some credit. But Baker is still not a great manager, and in many instances he is a total buffoon. I simply refuse to vote Baker (who has already won several MOY awards too many for my taste) into my top 3. I already admitted that there were some biases here. This award is mostly opinion based anyway.
Other Awards (National/American)
American League Middle Relief Pitcher of the Year
Winner: Joaquin Benoit (RP-Tampa Bay)
Runner-up: Daniel Bard (RP-Boston)
Third Place: Scott Downs (RP-Toronto)
Comments: This one wasn’t so hard for me. Benoit was the best high-leverage situation pitcher in the game this season. He made 63 appearances, fanning 75 over 60.1 innings with only 11 walks, and posting a 1.34 ERA and a 0.68 WHIP. He had 1 save and 25 holds, with only 3 blown saves.
National League Middle Relief Pitcher of the Year
Winner: Hong-Chih Kuo (RP-Los Angeles)
Runner-up: Luke Gregerson (RP-San Diego)
Third Place: Mike Adams (RP-San Diego)
Comments: This one was also fairly easy for me. Kuo made 56 appearances and had a 1.20 ERA and a 0.78 WHIP over 60 innings. He struck out 73 with only 18 walks, and notched 12 saves and 21 holds with only 1 blown save.
American League Rookie Pitcher of the Year
Winner: Neftali Feliz (Closer-Texas)
Runner-up: Brian Matusz (SP-Baltimore)
Third Place: Wade Davis (SP-Tampa Bay)
Comments: Obviously this was an easy choice. Feliz was one of the best closers in the game, while Matusz and Davis finished 2nd and 3rd by default.
National League Rookie Pitcher of the Year
Winner: (Tie) Jaime Garcia (SP-St. Louis)/John Axford (Closer-Milwaukee)
Third Place: Johnny Venters (RP-Atlanta)
Comments: Garcia and Axford both had very impressive rookie seasons. While most people would give the award to Garcia because he is a starter, I decided to split the award. Garcia had a very good ERA but some of his numbers weren’t that impressive (1.32 WHIP).
American League Rookie Position Player of the Year
Winner: Austin Jackson (CF-Detroit)
Runner-up: John Jaso (C-Tampa Bay)
Third Place: Brennan Boesch (RF-Detroit)
Comments: This wasn’t a hard choice. Jackson wasn’t great, but he was the only AL rookie that played every day. And he had a decent first year, hitting .293 with 34 doubles, 10 triples, and 27 stolen bases. He led all AL rookies in RC by a mile. And he played a very good center field.
National League Rookie Position Player of the Year
Winner: Buster Posey (C-San Francisco)
Runner-up: Jayson Heyward (RF-Atlanta)
Third Place: Mike Stanton (RF-Florida)
Comments: This was basically all covered in the NL ROY section.
American League Executive of the Year
Winner: Jon Daniels (Texas)
Runner-up: Jim Smith (Minnesota)
Third Place: Brian Cashman (New York Yankees)
Comments: Another award based largely on a team’s success or failure, although we have more evidence to work with here than we do with the managers. The award for Daniels is based partly on the work he did this season and partly on his work building this Rangers team. Obviously, acquiring Cliff Lee when it looked certain that he was heading to New York was gigantic. And remember that Daniels has been working for a franchise that was going through bankruptcy proceedings and a change of ownership. I also don’t think Daniels gets enough credit, as he is greatly overshadowed by Nolan Ryan.
National League Executive of the Year
Winner: Brian Sabean (San Francisco)
Runner-up: Ruben Amaro (Philadelphia)
Third Place: Frank Wren (Atlanta)
Comments: The Phillies did not get back to the World Series this season, but it wasn’t because Amaro failed to build a team capable of doing it. The players just didn’t get it done. Sabean is going to get a lot of credit and he should. There was a lot of fluke in SF’s world championship run (sorry but there was), but it really doesn’t matter. Sabean’s moves worked. He built this pitching staff, he brought Posey up (finally), he brought in Aubrey Huff during the offseason, and he brought on Pat Burrell and Cody Ross during the season. He deserves credit.
Other Awards (Major League)
The Barry Bonds Award
Major League Baseball Player of the Year
Winner: Josh Hamilton (LF-Texas)
Runner-up: Miguel Cabrera (1B-Detroit)
Third Place: Albert Pujols (1B-St. Louis)
Comments: Much of this was explained earlier. Hamilton led all of baseball in RC/27, batting, Slugging, and OPS.
The Bob Gibson Award
Major League Baseball Starting Pitcher of the Year
Winner: Roy Halladay (SP-Philadelphia)
Runner-up: Felix Hernandez (SP-Seattle)
Third Place: Adam Wainwright (SP-St. Louis)
Comments: This was a close one but I went with Halladay for the same reasons that I went with him over Wainwright for NL Cy Young. He is the closest thing to a true old school ace that there is in the game today. He led all of baseball in IP, CG, and SHO. He was tied for 1st in wins, 5th in ERA, 3rd in WHIP, and tied for 5th in K’s.
The Jesse Orosco Award
Major League Baseball Middle Reliever of the Year
Winner: Hong-Chih Kuo (RP-Los Angeles)
Runner-up: Joaquin Benoit (RP-Tampa Bay)
Third Place: Luke Gregerson (RP-San Diego)
Comments: It was very hard to choose between Kuo and Benoit. I went with Kuo because of his versatility, saving 12 and recording 21 holds with only 1 blown save.
The Mariano Rivera Award
Major League Baseball Closer of the Year
Winner: Rafael Soriano (Closer-Tampa Bay)
Runner-up: Joakim Soria (Closer-Kansas City)
Third Place: Heath Bell (Closer-San Diego)
Comments: This was mostly explained earlier. The NL closers were not as dominant as Soriano.
The Bob Hamelin Award
Major League Baseball Rookie Position Player of the Year
Winner: Buster Bosey (C-San Francisco)
Runner-up: Jason Heyward (RF-Atlanta)
Third Place: Mike Stanton (RF-Florida)
Comments: This was explained earlier. There were no great candidates in the AL. In fact, there were at least 8, and as many as 10 National League rookie position players who would have ranked ahead of the best AL rookie position player.
The Scott Williamson Award
Major League Baseball Rookie Pitcher of the Year
Winner: Neftali Feliz (Closer-Texas)
Runner-up: (Tie) Jaime Garcia (SP-St. Louis)/John Axford (Closer-Milwaukee)
Comments: This wasn’t a no-brainer at first glance, but Feliz was really the clear choice. He was the most dominant rookie pitcher this season.
The Ben Grieve Award
Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year
Winner: Neftali Feliz (Closer-Texas)
Runner-up: Buster Posey (C-San Francisco)
Third Place: Jason Heyward (RF-Atlanta)
Comments: This award might have gone to Posey if he had played the full season in the Majors.
The Sparky Anderson Award
Major League Baseball Manager of the Year
Winner: Bobby Cox (Atlanta)
Runner-up: Bruce Bochy (San Francisco)
Third Place: Ron Washington (Texas)
Comments: Bobby Cox doesn’t always make the best decisions in the postseason, but he sure knows how to get the best out of his players, and he knows how to get a team to play together and for each other.
The John Schuerholz Award
Major League Baseball Executive of the Year
Winner: Brian Sabean (San Francisco)
Runner-up: John Daniels (Texas)
Third Place: Ruben Amaro (Philadelphia)
Comments: The criticism came down on Sabean again this season, but this time his moves worked.
The Matt Stairs Award
Major League Baseball Pinch Hitter of the Year
Winner: Chris Heisey (Cincinnati)
Runner-up: Eric Hinske (Atlanta)
Third Place: Ryan Spilborghs (Colorado)
Comments: This Heisey guy was big for Cinci. I had no idea he existed until he took Billy Wagner deep in the 9th inning of a game in May, tying the score at 4-4 against my Bravos. We ended up winning in the bottom half of the 9th, and I figured he was a scrub and soon forgot about him. But then in late July, Heisey robbed Brooks Conrad of a pinch hit homer with 2-out in the top of the 9th in a 4-4 game. In the bottom of the 9th he singled with one out but was left stranded, and we eventually won 6-4 in 10. Anyway, Heisey was a force late in the game for Cinci. He had only 29 PA as a pinch hitter, but had 8 hits, 4 BB, a HBP, a SF, a triple, 4 homers, 7 RBI and 7 runs. He hit .348/.448/.957/1.405 as a pinch hitter.
Hinske was also great and he was used much more often in a pinch. In 54 pinch hit PA, Hinske had 14 hits, 5 BB, 2 HBP, 3 doubles, a triple, 3 homers, 12 RBI, and 13 runs. He struck out only 7 times and hit .298/.389/.596/.985. He had 4 PH PA in the postseason, going 1 for 3 with a 2-run homer and a walk. That dinger was a go-ahead-from-behind shot in the bottom of the 8th of game 3. It should have been a game winner.
The Mark Lemke Award
Major League Baseball Postseason Most Valuable Player
Winner: Tim Lincecum (SP-San Francisco)
Runner-up: Brian Wilson (Closer-San Francisco)
Third Place: (Tie) Matt Cain (SP-San Francisco)/Cody Ross (OF-San Francisco)
Comments: Yeah, so pitching was fairly important to the Giants’ success this season. This wasn’t an easy award to pick. Edgar Renteria came up huge in the World Series and wound up winning the MVP, but in the 2 previous series he went 3 for 18. Cain was almost perfect during the postseason, going 2-0 in 3 starts with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP over 21.1 innings. But he still only affected the outcome of 3 games (1 of which the Giants eventually lost) during the postseason. Cody Ross had one of the great surprise postseasons of all-time. He was 15 for 51 with 5 doubles, 5 homers, 7 BB, a HBP, 11 runs, and 10 RBI. Ross batted .294/.390/.686/1.076 during the postseason and was the NLCS MVP.
My first reaction was to give this award to Brian Wilson. He pitched in 10 games for the G-Men in the postseason and San Fran was 9-1 in those games. He was 1-0 with 6 saves (only 1 blown save) and allowed just 1 unearned run over 11.2 innings, finishing with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. In the NLCS, Wilson had 3 saves and a win while throwing 5.2 scoreless innings. I was thinking I would give the award to Wilson over Lincecum, because while Lincecum certainly had some great performances this postseason, he wasn’t invincible. But in the end I realized that there was really no choice other than Lincecum. He pitched in 6 games for the Giants, making 5 postseason starts, and going 4-1 with a hold and a complete game shutout. Over 37 innings, Lincecum allowed 11 runs (10 earned), and fanned 43. He had a 2.43 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP. Lincecum had 2 wins in the World Series.
All-League Teams
All-American League Team
Catcher: Joe Mauer (Minnesota)
First Base: Miguel Cabrera (Detroit)
Second Base: Robinson Cano (New York Yankees)
Shortstop: Alexei Ramirez (Chicago White Sox)
Third Base: Adrian Beltre (Boston)
Left Field: Josh Hamilton (Texas)
Center Field: Vernon Wells (Toronto)
Right Field: Jose Bautista (Toronto)
Designated Hitter: David Ortiz (Boston)
Left-Handed Starter: David Price (Tampa Bay)
Right-Handed Starter: Felix Hernandez (Seattle)
Left-Handed Middle Reliever: Scott Downs (Toronto)
Right-Handed Middle Reliever: Joaquin Benoit (Tampa Bay)
Left-Handed Closer: Brian Fuentes (Minnesota)
Right-Handed Closer: Rafael Soriano (Tampa Bay)
Comments: Alexei Ramirez? What happened to the days when there was a logjam in terms of All-Star quality shortstops in the American League? Remember when Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Nomar Garciaparra, and Miguel Tejada were all in their prime at the same time? Yeah, it’s a little different now. The best shortstop in the AL this season had a .313 OBP and was caught stealing 8 times in 21 attempts. Once again Brian Fuentes finds his way onto this team by default.
All-National League Team
Catcher: Buster Posey (San Francisco)
First Base: Albert Pujols (St. Louis)
Second Base: Dan Uggla (Florida)
Shortstop: Troy Tulowitzki (Colorado)
Third Base: Ryan Zimmerman (Washington)
Left Field: Carlos Gonzalez (Colorado)
Center Field: Andrew McCutchen (Pittsburgh)
Right Field: Jayson Werth (Philadelphia)
Left-Handed Starter: Cole Hamels (Philadelphia)
Right-Handed Starter: Roy Halladay (Philadelphia)
Left-Handed Middle Reliever: Hong-Chih Kuo (Los Angeles)
Right-Handed Middle Reliever: Luke Gregerson (San Diego)
Left-Handed Closer: Billy Wagner (Atlanta)
Right-Handed Closer: Heath Bell (San Diego)
Comments: My biggest surprise while picking this team was not that Buster Posey made the roster, or that Brian McCann did not, it was that I almost went with Geovany Soto as my All-NL catcher. He hit .280/.393/.497/.890 with 19 doubles, 17 homers, 53 RBI, and 62 walks in 387 PA. However, Soto made 5 errors, allowed 2 passed balls, and threw out only 22% of base stealers.
All-Major League Team
Catcher: Joe Mauer (Minnesota)
First Base: Miguel Cabrera (Detroit)
Second Base: Robinson Cano (New York Yankees)
Shortstop: Troy Tulowitzki (Colorado)
Third Base: Ryan Zimmerman (Washington)
Left Field: Josh Hamilton (Texas)
Center Field: Andrew McCutchen (Pittsburgh)
Right Field: Jose Bautista (Toronto)
Left-Handed Starter: David Price (Tampa Bay)
Right-Handed Starter: Roy Halladay (Philadelphia)
Left-Handed Middle Reliever: Hong-Chih Kuo (Los Angeles)
Right-Handed Middle Reliever: Joaquin Benoit (Tampa Bay)
Left-Handed Closer: Billy Wagner (Atlanta)
Right-Handed Closer: Rafael Soriano (Tampa Bay)
Comments: Most of the guys on this list play for teams who were good this season or are usually good. Then there is Ryan Zimmerman and Andrew McCutchen, who play for two of the perennial cellar dwellers.
Major League Baseball Gold(ish) Glove Team
Pitcher: Tim Hudson (Atlanta)
Catcher: Yadier Molina (St. Louis)
First Base: Albert Pujols (St. Louis)
Second Base: Robinson Cano (New York Yankees)
Shortstop: Troy Tulowitzki (Colorado)
Third Base: Jose Lopez (Seattle)
Left Field: Carl Crawford (Tampa Bay)
Center Field: Adam Jones (Baltimore)
Right Field: Ichiro Suzuki (Seattle)
Comments: I was a bit worried about attempting to make such a list, but in the end I couldn’t resist the temptation of trying. The list was made through a combination of stats and watching guys play (with the exception of Jose Lopez. If I’ve seen him play in the last year or so I’ve forgotten all about it).
Just For Fun Awards
Best Regular Season Team: Tampa Bay Rays
Most Surprising Team: San Diego Padres
Biggest Mid-Year Turnaround: San Francisco Giants
Biggest Late Season Collapse: San Diego Padres
Most Disappointing American League Team: Seattle Mariners
Most Disappointing National League Team: Chicago Cubs
Most Over-Achieving American League Team: Toronto Blue Jays
Most Over-Achieving National League Team: Atlanta Braves
Most Under-Achieving American League Team: New York Yankees
Most Under-Achieving National League Team: Philadelphia Phillies
Most Anonymously Decent Team: Chicago White Sox
Best Non-Playoff Team: San Diego Padres
Worst American League Team: Seattle Mariners
Worst National League Team: Pittsburgh Pirates
Luckiest American League Team: Baltimore Orioles
Luckiest National League Team: Pittsburgh Pirates
Most Snake-bit American League Team: Boston Red Sox
Most Snake-bit National League Team: Atlanta Braves
Worst Front-Office: Florida Marlins
Worst American League Managerial Job: Don Wakamatsu (Seattle Mariners)
Worst National League Managerial Job: Lou Piniella (Chicago Cubs)
Worst American League Fans: Tampa Bay Rays
Worst National League Fans: Florida Marlins
Best Fans: (Tie) Philadelphia Phillies/Los Angeles Dodgers
Comments: You might be wondering how two of the worst teams in baseball could be considered two of the luckiest. The Orioles won only 66 games, but based on their run differential they actually should have won only 64 games. They had the best extra inning record in baseball (13-4) and the 2nd best 1-run game record (29-21). Pittsburgh didn’t do that well in extra innings or 1-run games, which isn’t very surprising considering that they only won 57 games total. Still, based on their run differential they should have only won 53 games. Houston actually won 7 more games than they should have based on their run differential, but in my opinion the Pirates were lucky to win 10 games this season. Plus, this was another opportunity to mock the Pirates.
The Jeff Francoeur Award
Major League Baseball Least Valuable Player of the Year
Winner: Brandon Wood (3B-Aneheim)
Runner-up: Luis Montanez (LF-Baltimore)
Third Place: Kazuo Matsui (2B-Houston)
Comments: I actually considered Ken Griffey Jr. for this award. Junior Griffey was 18 for 98 with 2 doubles, 0 homers, 7 RBI, 9 BB, and 17 K for the Mariners. Then when called upon to pinch hit he was found sleeping in the clubhouse. He retired soon afterward. For a first-ballot hall-of-famer, that’s pretty pathetic. But there were a few guys who sucked worse than Griffey in 2010.
Kaz Matsui, who is so weak he makes Boy George look like a hard-nosed gamer, went 10 for 71 with 1 double, no homers, and 4 walks to hit .141/.197/.155/.352 for the Astros. Josh Hamilton’s batting average was higher than Matsui’s OPS. Think about that for a second.
Baltimore outfielder Luis Montanez had only 8 hits in 57 at bats. The Lou Dog had 0 extra base hits, 3 RBI, and 1 walk, hitting .140/.155/.140/.296. Louie has to be upset, but hopefully he does not realize that Al Leiter once had a better year at the plate (2002 if you don’t believe me) than he just had.
While Kaz and Luis were absolutely dreadful, I had to give the award to Brandon Wood, once considered a can’t miss prospect for the Angels. The main reason that the award has to go to Wood is that he played so much more than the other two candidates. I picked the Angels to again win the AL West this season. Obviously that was a bad call on my part. However, I might have stood a better chance to be correct if Wood had not participated in exactly half of Anaheim’s games this season. In 81 games, Wood went 53 for 226 to hit .146/.174/.208/.382 with 2 doubles, 4 homers, 14 RBI, 1 SB, and 6 BB against 71 K. With RISP and 2 out, Wood went 2 for 28 with 0 walks and 11 K. He finished the year on a 3 for 46 skid, with 17 K and 2 walks over that stretch. He went 0 for his last 21 with 7 K and 0 BB. He also committed 10 errors in the field.
The Hideki Arabu Award
Major League Baseball Least Valuable Pitcher of the Year
Winner: Andrew Miller (SP-Florida)
Runner-up: Charlie Morton (SP-Pittsburgh)
Third Place: Victor Marte (RP-Kansas City)
Comments: This one was tough to pick because there were 7 or 8 good candidates. Victor Marte has got to be thankful that the Royals are around. They signed him as an unrestricted FA out of the DR in 2000, and he didn’t make his MLB debut until 2009 (it did not go well: 8 games, 12 innings, 8.25 ERA, 2.08 WHIP). This season he pitched in 22 games for the big club, all in relief, and he may have given us the best argument yet for the doing away with of won-loss records for pitchers. Marte pitched 27.2 innings, allowing 30 runs on 38 hits, 15 walks, 2 HBP, a wild pitch, and 8 homers. He posted a 9.76 ERA and a 1.92 WHIP. His record? 3-0.
Charlie Morton, a former Braves pitching prospect, is not exactly developing the way the Pirates had hoped. In 17 starts in 2010, Morton allowed 79 runs (67 earned) on 112 hits, 26 BB, 7 HBP, 5 WP, 15 homers, and a balk over 79.2 innings. He had a 7.57 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP. By the way, he also made 3 errors in only 21 chances in the field. At least Morton’s 2-12 record was a more accurate reflection of his performance than Marte’s.
But the winner this year was Andrew Miller. Like Brandon Wood, Miller was supposed to be a can’t miss prospect. Selected by the Tigers with the 6th pick of the 2006 draft, Miller was one of the main pieces sent to the Marlins in the Dontrelle Willis/Miguel Cabrera trade. He hasn’t panned out. Miller made 9 appearances for Florida in 2010, 2 in relief and 7 as a starter. In 34.2 innings of work, Miller allowed 34 runs (31 earned) on 51 hits, 26 walks, a HBP, 5 WP, and 6 homers. He posted an 8.54 ERA and an unthinkable 2.36 WHIP, finishing with a record of 1-5. Miller also went 0 for 9 with 3 K’s at the plate.
The Thom Brennaman Award
Major League Baseball Biggest Douche of the Year
Winner: Nyjer Morgan (CF-Washington)
Comments: Clueless. Morgan played in 136 games for the Gonats in 2010, hitting .253/.319/.314/.633 with no homers, 24 RBI, and 40 walks against 88 strikeouts. He even hit into a pair of double plays. After “leading” the NL getting caught stealing 17 times in 2009, Morgan repeated the feat in 2010, again getting caught an NL “best” 17 times. The only difference this year was that his stolen base total dropped from 42 to 34. He also made 5 errors in center field and had only 2 assists. Morgan hit .237 with RISP and hit just .231 with RISP and 2 out. In innings 7-9 Morgan hit just .224.
But of course it wasn’t even Morgan’s horrid stats or his brain dead base running that led to him winning the coveted Biggest Douche of the Year Award. It was his idiotic, immature, and embarrassing behavior that earned him the prestigious BDYA. On August 21st in Philadelphia, Morgan was catching some (justifiable) flack from the fans in the center field stands for his silly “style” of wearing the uniform (baggy pants, high stirrups, and of course a tilted hat, cocked to the side, B-Boy style) and so after catching a fly ball for the final out of an inning he hurled the ball at a fan. The ball ended up hitting a different fan in the face and Morgan was later suspended 7 games.
A week later on August 28th, while crossing home plate as the 3rd runner on a bases loaded double by Willie Harris, Morgan intentionally veered to his left and leaned his shoulder into the back of the St. Louis catcher who had stepped a few feet in front of home plate in order to clear the way for Morgan. Morgan never even touched home plate. As he reached the dugout his teammates told him to turn back and touch home but by that time he had gone too far away and was out. No assist was credited on the play. Morgan simply didn’t score and was ruled out. Even Morgan’s teammates and coaching staff were upset by that maneuver.
But Morgan was just getting started. A few days later on August 31st, Morgan and the Nats were locked in a scoreless tie with the Marlins in Florida and the game went to extras. In the top of the 10th, Morgan rounded third with 2 down and it looked certain that he would slide in safely for the go-ahead run. The catcher had left the plate wide open and there was no way that Morgan could be tagged before he got his foot across the plate. But Morgan decided to turn away from the plate and barrel over catcher Brett Hayes. Hayes would suffer a season ending shoulder injury, but he held onto the ball and Morgan was out to end the inning with the game still scoreless. The Marlins scored a run in the bottom of the inning to win the game 1-0.
The next night the Marlins hit Morgan with a pitch, but rather than take his well deserved beaning like a pro, Morgan—with his team trailing by double digits—decided to steal 2nd and 3rd. The next time up the Marlins threw behind Morgan and he charged the mound. He was pummeled by several Marlins and had to be saved by Nationals coach Pat Listach. While exiting the field Morgan celebrated, shouting and raising his fist as the crowd (okay, well it wasn’t really a crowd, but the people scattered about the stadium) showered him with boos and jeers. He was handed an 8-game suspension for this incident. Thus, Morgan was facing suspensions of 7 and 8 games at the same time.
By the way, Morgan often refers to himself as “Tony Plush,” saying that is his “Gentleman’s name.” No, I’m completely serious. Yes, he’s that big of a douche bag clown.
