OK, first let me admit that I am not the baseball expert here, much less the AL baseball expert (I'm a Braves fan) but seriously? Dustin Pedroia, AL MVP? The guy is literally the exact same size as I am. I like scrappy players as much as the next guy, but that doesn't mean they should be league MVP.
Maybe I just miss the steriod-filled days when guys like Juan Gonzalez, Miguel Tejada, and Jason Giambi were winning these awards. I guess times have changed when Miguel Cabrera is able to lead the AL in homers with only 37 dingers. For the record, that would have been good for tenth back in 2000.
Even still, I find it hard to believe that there wasn't a single player who could beat out Pedroia. Sure, he led the league in runs, hits, and doubles, and finished second in batting average, but I'm still not feeling it. He only hit 17 home runs and didn't break 100 RBI. You could compare his achievements to Ichiro's MVP-winning season in 2001, but at least Ichiro batted .350 and had over 50 stolen bases that season.
The truth is that there just wasn't a standout player this season in the AL. I think you could have made a solid case for Josh Hamilton or Kevin Youkilis. Hamilton led the league in RBI and was in the top ten for hits, home runs, and slugging percentage. Youkilis had better power stats than Pedroia and also had a higher on-base percentage. Hell, even A-Rod's numbers (in a down year by his standards) were every bit as good as Pedroia's. A-Rod batted .300, hit twice as many home runs as Pedroia, had over 100 RBI, and led the league in slugging. He also had a higher on-base percentage than Pedroia. Of course, the argument against A-Rod and Hamilton is that their teams didn't even make the playoffs.
On a bit of a side note, I have to say I'm a little perplexed that Nick Markakis did not get a single vote. I don't think he deserved to win, but his numbers were nearly identical to Pedroia's.
Player A - 118 runs scored, 54 doubles, 17 home runs, 83 RBI, .326 BA, .376 OBP, .493 SLG
Player B - 106 runs scored, 48 doubles, 20 home runs, 87 RBI, .306 BA, .406 OBP, .491 SLG
Obviously, if you were paying attention earlier when I mentioned that Pedroia only had 17 home runs, you know that he is player A. The difference appears minimal at best. Pedroia plays a more difficult position (2B) than Markakis (RF), but I don't see how that could be the difference between winning the MVP and not getting a single vote. Sure, the Orioles lost nearly 100 games, but voters (or at least one or two of them) managed to cast ballots for Ichiro and Raul Ibanez from the 100+ loss Mariners, as well as Oriole teammate Aubrey Huff.
I guess my conclusion from this rant is that when a league lacks a clear standout candidate, voters default to voting for the perceived top player from one of the playoff teams. The Rays, Angels, and White Sox lacked anyone close to worthy of the AL MVP, with the possible exception of Carlos Quentin (who suffered a late season injury that killed his chances), so voters basically defaulted to selecting either Pedroia or Youkilis. Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer also received some consideration since they just missed the playoffs, but that was probably compensation for the lack of any other candidates.
At least the NL got it right when they voted for Albert Pujols, who was head and shoulders above everyone else this season. And for what it's worth, I think Phillies second baseman Chase Utley had a better season than Dustin Pedroia, yet he didn't even finish in the top ten for NL MVP. I guess that's just one more reason why I prefer the NL.
Maybe I just miss the steriod-filled days when guys like Juan Gonzalez, Miguel Tejada, and Jason Giambi were winning these awards. I guess times have changed when Miguel Cabrera is able to lead the AL in homers with only 37 dingers. For the record, that would have been good for tenth back in 2000.
Even still, I find it hard to believe that there wasn't a single player who could beat out Pedroia. Sure, he led the league in runs, hits, and doubles, and finished second in batting average, but I'm still not feeling it. He only hit 17 home runs and didn't break 100 RBI. You could compare his achievements to Ichiro's MVP-winning season in 2001, but at least Ichiro batted .350 and had over 50 stolen bases that season.
The truth is that there just wasn't a standout player this season in the AL. I think you could have made a solid case for Josh Hamilton or Kevin Youkilis. Hamilton led the league in RBI and was in the top ten for hits, home runs, and slugging percentage. Youkilis had better power stats than Pedroia and also had a higher on-base percentage. Hell, even A-Rod's numbers (in a down year by his standards) were every bit as good as Pedroia's. A-Rod batted .300, hit twice as many home runs as Pedroia, had over 100 RBI, and led the league in slugging. He also had a higher on-base percentage than Pedroia. Of course, the argument against A-Rod and Hamilton is that their teams didn't even make the playoffs.
On a bit of a side note, I have to say I'm a little perplexed that Nick Markakis did not get a single vote. I don't think he deserved to win, but his numbers were nearly identical to Pedroia's.
Player A - 118 runs scored, 54 doubles, 17 home runs, 83 RBI, .326 BA, .376 OBP, .493 SLG
Player B - 106 runs scored, 48 doubles, 20 home runs, 87 RBI, .306 BA, .406 OBP, .491 SLG
Obviously, if you were paying attention earlier when I mentioned that Pedroia only had 17 home runs, you know that he is player A. The difference appears minimal at best. Pedroia plays a more difficult position (2B) than Markakis (RF), but I don't see how that could be the difference between winning the MVP and not getting a single vote. Sure, the Orioles lost nearly 100 games, but voters (or at least one or two of them) managed to cast ballots for Ichiro and Raul Ibanez from the 100+ loss Mariners, as well as Oriole teammate Aubrey Huff.
I guess my conclusion from this rant is that when a league lacks a clear standout candidate, voters default to voting for the perceived top player from one of the playoff teams. The Rays, Angels, and White Sox lacked anyone close to worthy of the AL MVP, with the possible exception of Carlos Quentin (who suffered a late season injury that killed his chances), so voters basically defaulted to selecting either Pedroia or Youkilis. Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer also received some consideration since they just missed the playoffs, but that was probably compensation for the lack of any other candidates.
At least the NL got it right when they voted for Albert Pujols, who was head and shoulders above everyone else this season. And for what it's worth, I think Phillies second baseman Chase Utley had a better season than Dustin Pedroia, yet he didn't even finish in the top ten for NL MVP. I guess that's just one more reason why I prefer the NL.
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