My Vote for 2013 MLB Awards

Sep 1, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma (18) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Do I get a vote in the 2013 MVP, Cy Young and Rookie of the Year voting?

No.

I am not yet a member of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA). And even if I was, I’m not sure I would be granted a vote. After all, it seems that they hand out votes to everybody BUT baseball writers. I know that’s not completely true, but I have read articles over the years from people saying that they had votes for the awards and the Hall of Fame and they hadn’t watched a game outside of their local team all season.

One guy I read was an NFL writer. How does he get a vote?

Anyways, I thought it would be fun to put in my two cents for the awards for 2013. So here you go.

American League MVP: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers

Cabrera gets the nod again this season. And much like the 2012 campaign where many argued Mike Trout should win the award, many could argue this year that it should be Chris Davis of Baltimore.

Cabrera led the AL in batting (.348), OPS (1.078) and OBO (.442). He was 2nd in home runs (44) behind Davis (52). He was 2nd in RBI (137) to Davis (138). He was tied with Davis for 2nd in runs scored (103) behind Mike Trout (109). But the final deciding factor for me for Cabrera was the strikeout total. Cabrera struck out 94 times in 555 at-bats. Davis struck out 199 times in 584 at-bats.

2nd place: Davis
3rd place: Mike Trout, LA Angels

National League MVP: Paul Goldschmidt, Arizona Diamondbacks

This was a really tough decision and is open for debate. You could argue that Matt Carpenter should win it, some can argue for Freddie Freeman, while others would throw their weight behind Clayton Kershaw. I have never been a fan of the MVP going to a pitcher…..ever.

Goldschmidt finished with a .302 average (11th in the NL) with 36 homers (T-1st) and a league-high 125 RBI. He finished tied for 3rd in runs scored (103). There was no Miguel Cabrera-esque player in the NL who just ran away with it. My vote goes to Goldie. I’m fine with whomever not named Kershaw actually wins it.

2nd place: Carpenter
3rd place: Freeman

American League Cy Young: Max Scherzer, Detroit Tigers

October 4, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Max Scherzer (37) delivers a pitch against the Oakland Athletics during the first inning in game one of the American League divisional series playoff baseball game at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Anytime a pitcher has a 21-3 record at the end of the season, the Cy will usually go to them. But let’s look at some other stats. Scherzer led the league in WHIP (0.97) and had the 2nd-lowest opponent avg against (.198) behind Yu Darvish. His 2.90 ERA was 5th in the AL behind Darvish (2.83), Hisashi Iwakuma (2.66), Bartolo Colon (2.65) and Anibal Sanchez (2.57).

Scherzer tied for 5th in innings pitched (214.1) and was 2nd in the league in strikeouts (240) behind Darvish. Scherzer was just simply, the most complete starting pitcher this year in the AL.

2nd place: Darvish
3rd place: Iwakuma

National League Cy Young: Clayton Kershaw, LA Dodgers

An NL-best 232 strikeouts, a league-low 1.83 ERA, a league-low 0.92 WHIP. Who cares if his record was only 16-9? Kershaw was the most dominant pitcher in either league in 2013. His 16 wins tied him for 3rd with Francisco Liriano and Jorge De La Rosa behind Jordan Zimmerman and Adam Wainwright who each won 19 games.

Kershaw also had two shutouts (tied with Wainwright and Zimmerman for most in NL) and three complete games (Wainwright had five). If anyone can honestly say Kershaw is not the Cy Young winner, they are Nats fans or Cards fans.

2nd place: Wainwright
3rd place: Zach Greinke, LA Dodgers

American League Rookie of the Year: Wil Myers, Tampa Bay Rays

This is not a runaway victory by any means. Myers wins the vote mostly because his numbers were good enough and the team made the playoffs. I think that’s how many of the voters will vote as well.

Teammate Chris Archer (9-7, 3.22, 2 CG, 2 SHO) will receive some consideration as will Martin Perez of Texas (10-6, 3.62). The Angels’ J. B. Shuck also surprised some people. But I think the edge goes to Myers.

2nd place: Perez
3rd place: Archer

National League Rookie of the Year: Yasiel Puig, LA Dodgers

This IS a runaway victory, though 2nd and 3rd place are hard to peg. The Wild Horse burst onto the scene and become an instant celebrity in LA. Batting .319 with 19 homers and 42 RBI. While there were rookies with better totals in each, none had as big an impact with their team and help their team achieve more than Puig did with the Dodgers.

2nd place: Jose Fernandez, Miami Marlins
3rd place: Evan Gattis, Atlanta Braves

We shall see in a few week’s time if these hold true or not. But it’s who I would vote for if the BBWAA gave me one….hint hint.