July 6, 2012
The All-Star break of another mesmerizing baseball season is upon us. And once again, I know what you're thinking:
How come nobody has thrown a no-hitter in the past 10 minutes?
Has Aaron Hill done enough cycling lately to qualify for the Tour de France? ?
And, of course, is it true that wacky home run colossus in Miami also eats spiders, repels hurricanes and once had to be forcibly restrained from trying to sneak over to LeBron's house?
OK, so it's possible you weren't thinking about any of those important questions. But whatever. It's time again for my annual Midseason Awards Extravaganza.
*****
#22 Center Fielder
I can't believe I'm not casting this vote for Joey Votto -- a man with a shot to become the first NL player in the past 10 years not named Barry Bonds or Albert Pujols to have an 1.100 OPS … a man on the road to becoming the sixth NL hitter in the past 50 years to reach base 320 times … a man whose commitment to greatness elevates his team every day of the season. But as much as I appreciate the brilliance of Votto, I don't think he's the MVP of this particular half-season, though only in a not-quite kind of way. I'm casting this vote for McCutchen, because he's having a special year, at a special time in the life of his franchise, and one that gives special meaning to the "valuable" in Most Valuable Player. First off, let's consider what's at stake here. The Pirates, in case you nodded off after Sid Bream crossed home plate, haven't exactly reminded anybody of the Yankees these past 20 years. So consider the boulder that the Face of this Franchise has to lug on his shoulders. But McCutchen lugs it willingly. Instead of plotting his escape route out of town, he signed on this spring for six more years. Then he decided to go out and have a historic season for himself. If he has a second half to match his first half, he's heading for .356/.410/.603, with 32 homers, 28 steals and 207 hits. Given his .403 average on balls in play, you can expect a little dropoff. But just for the record, you know how many players since 1900 have even had a season in which they hit .345 or better, with 200 hits, 25 steals, 25 homers, a .400 OBP and a 1.000 OPS? Exactly two -- Larry Walker in 1997 (in Denver) and Willie Mays in 1958. Now let's add in the fact that McCutchen is doing all this in a lineup in which no other every-day player is within 80 points of him in batting average or OBP, or within about 200 points of him in OPS. So how is this possible, unless this guy is just willing his team toward the top of the standings? I know if you just crunch decimal points, they'll show you Votto should win this thing. But I surveyed two NL GMs who are both sabermetrically minded. And each said his vote would go to McCutchen -- in part because of the premier defensive position he plays, in part because of the credentials we just laid out and in part, one quipped, just because of his "overall awesomeness." whoa, it's tough to argue with any of that. So I didn't.
Apologies to: Votto, David Wright, Ryan Braun, Carlos Beltran, Carlos Ruiz, Melky Cabrera, Carlos Gonzalez, Giancarlo Stanton, Yadier Molina.
How come nobody has thrown a no-hitter in the past 10 minutes?
Has Aaron Hill done enough cycling lately to qualify for the Tour de France? ?
And, of course, is it true that wacky home run colossus in Miami also eats spiders, repels hurricanes and once had to be forcibly restrained from trying to sneak over to LeBron's house?
OK, so it's possible you weren't thinking about any of those important questions. But whatever. It's time again for my annual Midseason Awards Extravaganza.
NL MVP OF THE HALF-YEAR
Andrew McCutchen, Pirates
Andrew McCutchen
#22 Center Fielder
Pittsburgh Pirates
2012 STATS
- GM- 78
- HR- 16
- RBI- 54
- R- 53
- OBP- .410
- AVG- .356
I can't believe I'm not casting this vote for Joey Votto -- a man with a shot to become the first NL player in the past 10 years not named Barry Bonds or Albert Pujols to have an 1.100 OPS … a man on the road to becoming the sixth NL hitter in the past 50 years to reach base 320 times … a man whose commitment to greatness elevates his team every day of the season. But as much as I appreciate the brilliance of Votto, I don't think he's the MVP of this particular half-season, though only in a not-quite kind of way. I'm casting this vote for McCutchen, because he's having a special year, at a special time in the life of his franchise, and one that gives special meaning to the "valuable" in Most Valuable Player. First off, let's consider what's at stake here. The Pirates, in case you nodded off after Sid Bream crossed home plate, haven't exactly reminded anybody of the Yankees these past 20 years. So consider the boulder that the Face of this Franchise has to lug on his shoulders. But McCutchen lugs it willingly. Instead of plotting his escape route out of town, he signed on this spring for six more years. Then he decided to go out and have a historic season for himself. If he has a second half to match his first half, he's heading for .356/.410/.603, with 32 homers, 28 steals and 207 hits. Given his .403 average on balls in play, you can expect a little dropoff. But just for the record, you know how many players since 1900 have even had a season in which they hit .345 or better, with 200 hits, 25 steals, 25 homers, a .400 OBP and a 1.000 OPS? Exactly two -- Larry Walker in 1997 (in Denver) and Willie Mays in 1958. Now let's add in the fact that McCutchen is doing all this in a lineup in which no other every-day player is within 80 points of him in batting average or OBP, or within about 200 points of him in OPS. So how is this possible, unless this guy is just willing his team toward the top of the standings? I know if you just crunch decimal points, they'll show you Votto should win this thing. But I surveyed two NL GMs who are both sabermetrically minded. And each said his vote would go to McCutchen -- in part because of the premier defensive position he plays, in part because of the credentials we just laid out and in part, one quipped, just because of his "overall awesomeness." whoa, it's tough to argue with any of that. So I didn't.
Apologies to: Votto, David Wright, Ryan Braun, Carlos Beltran, Carlos Ruiz, Melky Cabrera, Carlos Gonzalez, Giancarlo Stanton, Yadier Molina.
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