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Mariners Season Of Change Could Result In Multiple Postseason Awards
Aug 7, 2014; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano (22, second from left) and pitcher Felix Hernandez (34, right) give high fives to first baseman Logan Morrison (20) and third baseman Kyle Seager (15) following the final out of a 13-3 victory against the Chicago White Sox at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
For the Seattle Mariners, the 2014 season isn’t over. They are right in the middle of the AL wild-card hunt and very much vying for a spot in October.
But, that doesn’t mean we can’t have a little fun and look ahead to the postseason awards. The Mariners have a chance at multiple winners for the first time in a long time. Let’s take a look at the categories, the candidates and the likelihood that a Mariner will walk away with it.
AL Silver Slugger
The Seattle Mariners haven’t had a Silver Slugger winner since 2009 when Ichiro Suzuki won it. Robinson Cano has won it every year since 2010. Both of those things could change this season.
While Cano could still win the award at 2B, with his home run numbers down this year, some will argue against it.
Brian Dozier of the Minnesota Twins leads all AL second basemen with 20 homers, but sports a .237 average. Jonathon Schoop of Baltimore has 15 homers and a .210 average. Cano is 4th in the AL with a .322 batting average. That’s second among 2B with Jose Altuve of the Astros leading the league.
You could argue for Altuve or Dozier but Cano is likely to get it again.
But Cano is not the only Mariner in line for a possible Silver Slugger.
Kyle Seager could earn his first this season, to go along with his first All-Star nod.
Seager is 2nd among AL third basemen in homers and RBI to Oakland’s Josh Donaldson. But his average is about 20 points higher than Donaldson’s. He will face some stiff competition from Josh and Adrian Beltre (.324, 18, 71) but you could definitely argue a case for Kyle.
Sep 2, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Seattle Mariners third baseman Kyle Seager (15) throws the ball to second base to start a double play against the Oakland Athletics during the eighth inning at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
AL Gold Glove
You have to go back to 2010 to find the last Mariners to win the Gold Glove. That year, both Ichiro and Franklin Gutierrez took home the hardware.
Once again, we look to Kyle Seager, who leads all AL third basemen with a .977 fielding percentage and 299 assists. He’s also second in the AL in defensive runs saved (8). He’s second in the AL in double plays among third basemen (Donaldson- OAK) but Donaldson has committed more than twice as many errors as Seager. Kyle should be getting the Gold Glove this season.
At second base, Robinson Cano has turned in another Gold Glove-worthy season. Since 2010, Cano and Dustin Pedroia have alternated winning the award. Cano in 2010 and 2012, Pedroia in 2011 and 2013 (also in 2008).
Pedroia leads the league this year in fielding percentage (.997) with Cano second (.992). Pedroia has committed only two errors this season, to Cano’s five.
The Gold Glove doesn’t always just go to the player with the best fielding percentage. But the numbers do point to Pedroia breaking the back-and-forth this season.
Pedroia has a commanding lead on Cano in dWAR (2.4 to 0.6) but with Pedroia having a down year at the plate and the Mariners being in the playoff chase, the voters may give it to Cano.
Felix Hernandez has a shot for a Gold Glove as well. As one of 10 American League qualifying pitchers to not commit an error this season – the list also includes Roenis Elias – Felix stands out having pitched more innings than the other nine, meaning he has put himself out there more often to be in a situation to make plays.
Felix has 24 assists (1st), 10 putouts (4th) and 2 double plays (3rd). It’s not impossible to believe that Felix could walk away with his first Gold Glove in 2014 and become the first Mariner to win it since Mark Langston (1987 & 1988).
In fact, it’s not too crazy to believe that the Mariners could end up with three winners.
Jul 15, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; American League pitcher Felix Hernandez (34) of the Seattle Mariners throws a pitch in the first inning during the 2014 MLB All Star Game at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
Cy Young Award
When Felix won the Cy Young award in 2010, many writers took to the internet blasting the process. Claiming that a player with a record of 13-12 had no reason to win the Cy Young. People overlooked his MLB-best 2.27 ERA and the fact that he played on a subpar team.
Now, Felix is having a fantastic season. He won’t win 20 games – though he was on pace for a time – but he is at or near the top of several pitching categories in the American League.
His 2.14 ERA is second to Chris Sale. His 14 wins is tied for 8th, three behind the AL leader Jared Weaver of the Angels. Mariners fans know all too well how many wins he should have right now.
He’s 2nd in the AL in innings pitched, opponents are batting .202 against him (3rd in the AL) and his WHIP stands at a league-best 0.92. He is also 4th in the AL in strikeouts.
You could also make a strong argument for Hisashi Iwakuma, who missed the first month of the season and still has 14 wins.
But this is Felix’s award to lose in my opinion. Some will vote for Chris Sale, some will vote for Max Scherzer and that’s fine, but it’s been Felix’s award to lose since Opening Day.
September 3, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Seattle Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano (22) bats during the sixth inning against the Oakland Athletics at O.co Coliseum. The Mariners defeated the Athletics 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
MVP Award and Other Awards
This is definitely a long shot, but you could make the argument for either Robinson Cano or Felix Hernandez to win this award. Without either of these guys, the Mariners are not playing meaningful baseball in September this season.
The award will most likely go to Mike Trout of the Angels, who has just missed winning it each of the last two years. With Miguel Cabrera having a somewhat down year, Trout should finally earn the award.
Cabrera is batting 20 points higher than Trout. Cano is batting 32 points higher. But Trout has 107 runs scored and 107 RBI, leading the league in each. His 34 HR’s are currently 4th in the AL but he is the main cog in the offensive machine that has lead the Angels to an MLB-best 93 wins with 13 games to go.
Felix and Cano will get votes, but this is more than likely Trout’s year.
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When it comes to Manager of the Year, the award will more than likely go to Baltimore’s Buck Showalter, for taking the Orioles to the AL East crown (not yet clinched but looking likely).
Lloyd McClendon will get some consideration for taking this Mariners team to double-digit improvement in wins (with their next win) over last season. His methods have come into question at times this season and fans don’t always agree with some of the choices, but the M’s will have a winning record for the first time since 2009 and some of the credit goes to Mac.
Chris Young is a likely candidate for Comeback Player of the Year. His 12 wins and 3.33 ERA are full season bests for Young missed most of 2013 after having thoracic outlet decompression surgery on his shoulder. He spent 495 days on the MLB disabled list from 2009-12 and 112 days on the minor league DL in 2013.
Young has the fourth-lowest batting average against in the AL at .225.
Finally, Fernando Rodney has a great shot at the Delivery Man of the Year award, the award given out to the best reliever.
Rodney has been tough to watch at times. But he has tied a franchise record with 45 saves on the season. He could get to 50 by year’s end and does lead the AL in saves. He does have six losses on the season, including three blown saves.
But it’s hard to deny that he has made a difference on this team.
So there you have it. The last two weeks of the season could go a long way in determining who wins what awards. But with so many potential candidates coming from the Mariners, it’s hard not to get excited and look ahead.
Though I’m sure most Mariners fans would trade in all of the postseason accolades for a trip to the World Series.