AL Manager of the Year: Bob Melvin, Oakland A's
This was a close decision over the Orioles' Buck Showalter, who may well win the award. Both made the most out of what appeared to be putrid rosters heading into the season (although the O's looked a bit better than the A's). While both are worthy, Melvin should win because he was able to lead his team to a division crown, while the Orioles won a wild card.
Runners up (in order): Buck Showalter, Baltimore Orioles; Robin Ventura, Chicago White Sox
NL Manager of the Year: Davey Johnson, Washington Nationals
Manager of the Year often goes to a skipper whose team turned it around in the standings, which makes Davey Johnson a favorite. He took his team from below .500 a year ago to the best record in baseball (98-64) this season. Johnson's main opposition is Dusty Baker, whose Reds pioneered on without former MVP Joey Votto for six weeks
Runners up (in order): Dusty Baker, Cincinnati Reds; Bruce Bochy, San Francisco Giants
AL Comeback Player of the Year: Fernando Rodney, Tampa Bay Rays
A lot of people campaign for Adam Dunn for this award, but I don't care how many home runs he hit; he struck out 222 times and batted a paltry .204. If it wasn't for his pop, all that would be deserving of is a demotion. Alex Rios is intriguing, but recently his career path has included up and down seasons, and all he seems to be doing is following that. Then there's Fernando Rodney, who came out of nowhere to convert 48/50 saves with a 0.60 ERA. Case closed.
Runners up (in order): Alex Rios, Chicago White Sox; Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins; Rafael Soriano, New York Yankees
NL Comeback Player of the Year: Kris Medlen, Atlanta Braves
Buster Posey is probably going to win this award. But I'd rather give it to a relative unknown than a superstar returning from injury, Kris Medlen, (who is also coming back from injury: Tommy John surgery). He was an afterthought when the Braves announced their Opening Day rotation, as they had five young starters and a recovering Tim Hudson. To start the season, Medlen posted a 2.48 ERA in 38 bullpen appearances. But this is where it gets nasty: Since joining the Braves' staff on July 31, Medlen has gone 9-0 with a 0.97 ERA. 24 innings short from the required 162 to qualify for percentage stats, Medlen can't qualify for any of them. If 138 innings was the cutoff, though, he would lead the NL in ERA (1.57), winning percentage (.909), and HR/9 IP (0.4). There's almost a better argument for him for Cy Young than teammate Craig Kimbrel.
Runners up (in order): Jason Heyward, Atlanta Braves; Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants; Adam Wainwright, St. Louis Cardinals; David Wright, New York Mets
AL Rookie of the Year: Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Yoenis Cespedes could have won it almost any other year.
Runners up (in order): Yoenis Cespedes, Oakland Athletics; Matt Moore, Tampa Bay Rays; Yu Darvish, Texas Rangers
NL Rookie of the Year: Wade Miley, Arizona Diamondbacks
No, it shouldn't be Bryce Harper, in fact, he could even be argued for fourth place. Wade Miley won sixteen games with an anemic offense behind him, and possessed a 3.33 ERA. Rockies catcher Wilin Rosario hit .270 with 28 home runs, and could be an offensive force for years to come. But he's a liability behind the plate. Statistically, Miley deserves this award, but in five years, he will likely not be the most talked about candidate on this list.
Runners up (in order): Wilin Rosario, Colorado Rockies; Bryce Harper, Washington Nationals; Todd Frazier, Cincinnati Reds; Norichicka Aoki, Milwaukee Brewers; Jordan Pacheco, Colorado Rockies
AL Cy Young: David Price, Tampa Bay Rays
Fernando Rodney will sure have support, but I'm of the belief that a closer, no matter what, should not win the Cy Young. The award is basically a toss-up between Justin Verlander and David Price. Price's ERA is seven points lower and he has three more wins on a worse offensive ballclub. Verlander, though, has tossed 27.1 more innings (in two more starts) and has 34 more strikeouts.
Runners up (in order): Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers; Fernando Rodney, Tampa Bay Rays; Jered Weaver, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim; Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners; Chris Sale, Chicago White Sox
NL Cy Young: R.A. Dickey, New York Mets
Craig Kimbrel's situation is the same as Rodney's. He pitched about as well as he could, but for no more than an inning a night. Johnny Cueto pitched in a bandbox and finished with a 2.78 ERA and nineteen wins, both third in the league. Clayton Kershaw, going for back-to-back Cys, led the league in ERA and WHIP, but with such similar stats to the others a 14-9 record won't cut it. Gio Gonzalez won 21 games but simply wasn't quite as impressive as R.A. Dickey or Cueto. Dickey led the league in complete games, innings pitched and strikeouts, finished second in ERA and wins and third in WHIP, all while throwing a power knuckler and being 37. He gets my vote.
Runners up (in order:) Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers; Johnny Cueto, Cincinnati Reds; Matt Cain, San Francisco Giants; Craig Kimbrel, Atlanta Braves; Gio Gonzalez, Washington Nationals
AL Most Valuable Player: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers
The rookie Mike Trout will get his in due time. But Miguel Cabrera hit for the Triple Crown. I value defense as much as anyone, but c'mon, Cabrera hit for the Triple Crown.
Runner up: Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
(Oh, and to discount that WAR argument made by Trout's supporters: Baseball-reference.com has Darwin Barney's WAR this season at 4.5, and Josh Hamilton's at 3.6. Using WAR alone, Ben Zobrist would be a two-time MVP winner.)
NL Most Valuable Player: Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants
Andrew McCutchen was the favorite for most of the season, but like his team, he cooled down once August started, batting only .252 from then to now. It's essentially between Buster Posey and Ryan Braun. Braun led the NL in home runs, runs scored, slugging percentage and OPS, finished second in RBI and third in batting average. Posey, the National League batting champion, was second in OPS, third in slugging percentage and sixth in RBI. Both play stellar defensively, but Posey will win because he is a catcher. When both had such similarly impressive seasons, that is certainly a deciding factor.
Runners up (in order): Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers; Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh Pirates; Chase Headley, San Diego Padres; Matt Holliday, St. Louis Cardinals
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