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The Sport Crack/ArmchairGM Collaborative Tri-Season MLB Awards
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In case you hadn’t noticed due to whatever reason, the baseball season is about one third complete. If your like me and have absolutely no patience at all, than your already prognosticating about the end of season awards. Then it hit me! Let’s dish out some third of the way through the season awards!
You’ll see your standard MVP’s and Cy Young’s here, but I’ve also added a lot of other awards which the MLB should definitely consider making official. Fantasy team killer awards anyone? Some of the awards are meant to be commendable while others point out a harsh truth in the guise of an award. Unlike the MLB, there are no AL and NL versions of each award. This is because it would have probably been way too long especially considering I’m including runners up.
Instead of just basing the awards on my own opinion, which is often wrong and biased, I’ve decided to post the nominees and let everyone vote in the comments. I already have an idea of who I’m going to go with and it won’t be a by the numbers winner, but I will definitely take the massive amounts of feedback into account. Oh the suspense! Let's get started -- the award and a brief description comes first, followed by the nominees.
Better off without them award:
‘Awarded’ to the player whose team would likely have been better off had they never stepped on the field this year.
The nominees:
Barry Zito (SP - SFG): 1-9 record, 5.87 ERA, 1.842 WHIP
Nick Swisher (OF - CHW): .204 batting average , 5 HRs, 16 RBIs, 3rd worst batting average in the starting lineup, 1 RBI from last place in the starting lineup in RBI's
Jarrod Washburn (SP - SEA): 2-7 record, 6.56 ERA, 1.576 WHIP
Khalil Greene (SS - SDG): .211 batting average, .255 OBP, 5 HRs, 24 RBIs
Flashback to draft day award:
Awarded to the player who would be unanimously picked #1 if everyone could go back in time and re-pick their fantasy teams.
The nominees (batters):
Chipper Jones (3B - ATL): leads the MLB in batting average (.418), OBP (.498), hits (89), 2nd in the NL in slugging percentage (.667)
Lance Berkman (1B - HOU): leads the MLB in slugging percentage (.732), .382 batting average, .465 OBP (3rd in the NL), 17 HRs (3rd in the NL), 48 RBIs (3rd in the NL)
Chase Utley (2B - PHI): Major League leading 21 HRs, 53 RBIs (2nd in NL), .315 batting average, .664 slugging percentage
Josh Hamilton (OF - TEX): 17 HRs (1st in AL), 68 RBIs (13 more than anyone in the MLB, 18 more than anyone in the AL), .611 SLG (2nd in AL), .321 batting average (4th in AL)
The nominees (pitchers):
Edinson Volquez (SP - CIN): 8-2 record, 1.32 ERA (leads MLB), 91 strikeouts (leads MLB)
Brandon Webb (SP - ARI): 10-2 record (leads MLB in wins), 2.69 ERA (4th in NL), 1.052 WHIP (2nd in NL), 72 strikeouts (6th in NL)
Cliff Lee (SP - CLE): 9-1 record (2nd most wins in MLB, 1st in AL), 2.45 ERA (1st in AL), 65 strikeouts (9th in AL)
Roy Halladay (SP - TOR): 7-5 record, 2.94 ERA (7th in AL), 1.000 WHIP (3rd in AL), 1.14 walks/9 innings (2nd least in AL), 6.17 walk/strikeout ratio (1st in AL)
Failure to live up to expectations team award:
‘Awarded’ to the team who has failed miserably in regards to living up to their preseason hype.
The nominees:
Detroit Tigers: 24-35 record (4th in AL Central), 9 games behind first, 276 runs scored (12th most in the MLB, 4th most in the AL), 302 runs allowed (5th most in the MLB, 3rd most in the AL)
Colorado Rockies: 22-38 record (5th in the NL West), 10 games behind first, 247 runs scored (24th in the MLB, 13th in the NL), 323 runs surrendered (2nd most in the MLB, 1st most in the NL)
New York Mets: 30-29 record (4th in the NL East), 4.5 games behind first, 282 runs scored (11th in the MLB, 9th in the NL), 276 runs surrendered (13th in the MLB, 7th most in the NL)
The steroid blues award:
‘Awarded’ to the player who has been on a suspicious decline now that the steroid testing rules have become more strict.
The nominees:
Eric Gagne (RP - MIL): 6.98 ERA, 2.017 WHIP, 10 saves in 15 opportunities
Gary Matthews Jr. (OF - LAA): .226 batting average, 6 HRs, 28 RBIs
Ivan Rodriguez (C - DET): .249 batting average, 1 HR, 20 RBIs
Jason Giambi (1B - NYY): .258 batting average, 12 HRs, 31 RBIs
Roger Clemens (SP - N/A) [Sorry, I had to]
The MVP award:
Awarded to the player who is the best player on his team and was a major part in getting them to the point they are currently at. Pretty self-explanatory.
The nominees:
Chase Utley (2B - PHI): Major League leading 21 HRs, 53 RBIs (2nd in NL), .315 batting average, .664 slugging percentage, leads his team in HRs, RBIs, doubles, triples, hits, and runs scored
Josh Hamilton (OF - TEX): 17 HRs (1st in AL), 68 RBIs (13 more than anyone in the MLB, 18 more than anyone in the AL), .611 SLG (2nd in AL), .321 batting average (4th in AL)
Lance Berkman (1B - HOU): leads the MLB in slugging percentage (.732), .382 batting average, .465 OBP (3rd in the NL), 17 HRs (3rd in the NL), 48 RBIs (3rd in the NL)
Chipper Jones (3B - ATL): leads the MLB in batting average (.418), OBP (.498), hits (89), 2nd in the NL in slugging percentage (.667)
Dan Uggla (2B - FLA): 18 HRs (2nd in NL), 41 RBIs, .309 batting average, .664 slugging percentage (4th in NL), leads his team in HRs, RBIs, batting average (with at least 100 at-bats), hits, doubles, slugging percentage, and is second in OBP (to Hanley Ramirez; players with only 100 at-bats)
The ace award:
Awarded to the most dominant starting pitcher in the entire league.
The nominees:
Brandon Webb (SP - ARI): 10-2 record (leads MLB in wins), 2.69 ERA (4th in NL), 1.052 WHIP (2nd in NL), 72 strikeouts (6th in NL)
Edinson Volquez (SP - CIN): 8-2 record, 1.32 ERA (leads MLB), 91 strikeouts (leads MLB)
Cliff Lee (SP - CLE): 9-1 record (2nd most wins in MLB, 1st in AL), 2.45 ERA (1st in AL), 65 strikeouts (9th in AL)
Joe Saunders (SP - LAA): 9-2 record (2nd most wins in MLB, 1st in AL), 2.63 ERA (3rd in AL), 1.085 WHIP (7th in AL)
Carlos Zambrano (SP - CHC): 8-1 (3rd most in MLB, 2nd most in NL), 2.51 ERA (3rd in NL)
Daisuke Matsuzaka (SP - BOS): 8-0 record (3rd most in MLB), 2.53 ERA (2nd in AL)
The shutdown award:
Awarded to the two most dominant closers in the entire league.
The nominees:
Francisco Rodriguez (RP - LAA): 2.00 ERA, 1.185 WHIP, 24 strikeouts, 16 walks, 24 saves in 25 opportunities... all in 27 innings
George Sherrill (RP - BAL): 3.04 ERA, 1.125 WHIP, 25 strikeouts, 14 walks, 20 saves in 22 opportunies... all in 26 2/3 innings
Jonathan Papelbon (RP - BOS): 2.00 ERA, 0.926 WHIP, 34 strikeouts, 3 walks, 17 saves in 19 opportunities... all in 27 innings
Joe Nathan (RP - MIN): 1.40 ERA, 1.052 WHIP, 26 strikeouts, 5 walks, 16 saves in 17 opportunities... all in 25 2/3 innings
Mariano Rivera (RP - NYY): 0.35 ERA, 0.500 WHIP, 26 strikeouts, 2 walks, 15 saves in 15 opportunities... all in 26 innings
Billy Wagner (RP - NYM): 0.36 ERA, 0.770 WHIP, 28 strikeouts, 4 walks, 13 saves in 15 opportunities...all in 24 2/3 innings
Failure to live up to expectations player award (Also known as the fantasy team killer award):
‘Awarded’ to the player who has failed miserably in regards to living up to their potential and thus has done immeasurable damage to fantasy baseball teams nation wide.
The nominees:
Johan Santana (SP - NYM): 7-3 record, 3.20 ERA, 1.200 WHIP, 71 strikeouts, 20 walks (5th in the AL Cy Young voting last year)
Robinson Cano (2B - NYY): .222 batting average, 49 hits, 4 HRs, 19 RBIs, .267 OBP (.306 batting average, 19 HRs, 97 RBIs, .353 OBP, 189 hits last year)
Josh Beckett (SP - BOS): 6-4 record, 4.07 ERA, 1.096 WHIP, 80 strikeouts, 14 walks (2nd in the AL Cy Young voting last year)
Erik Bedard (SP - SEA): 4-4 record, 4.47 ERA, 1.331 WHIP, 49 striketouts, 26 walks (5th in the AL Cy Young voting last year)
C.C. Sabathia (SP - CLE): 3-8 record, 4.81 ERA, 1.433 WHIP, 82 strikeouts, 28 walks (AL Cy Young Award winner last year)
The packed bandwagon award:
Awarded to the team whose bandwagon has gotten a lot more crowded than it was at the start of the season.
The nominees:
Tampa Bay Rays: 35-25 record, 1.5 games behind first in the AL East, 263 runs scored (20th most in the MLB, 9th most in the AL), 247 runs surrendered (5th least in MLB, 4th least in AL)
Florida Marlins: 32-27 record, 2.5 games behind first in the NL East, 289 runs scored (8th most in the MLB, 6th most in the NL), 287 runs surrendered (13th least in the MLB, 10th least in the NL)
Arizona Diamondbacks: 32-28 record, first place in the NL West, 292 runs scored (6th most in the MLB, 4th most in the NL), 255 runs surrendered (9th in the MLB, 4th least in the NL)
Chicago Cubs: 39-22 record, first place in the NL Central, 346 runs scored (2nd most in the MLB, the most in the NL), 250 runs surrendered (7th least in the MLB, 2nd least in the NL)
Soon to be a sporting household name:
Awarded to the player who was relatively unknown (save for KD) in the minors and projects to be a future superstar.
The nominees
Jay Bruce (CF - CIN): .432 batting average, 3 HRs, 7 RBIs, .533 OBP, .757 SLG in 10 games
Geovany Soto (C - CHC): .283 batting average, 10 HRs, 39 RBIs, .375 OBP, .540 SLG in 56 games
Yunel Escobar (2B - ATL): .303 batting average, 6 HRs, 27 RBIs, .375 OBP, .417 SLG
Evan Longoria (3B - TBR): .244 batting average, 7 HRs, 28 RBIs, .324 OBP, .432 SLG
Let the debates begin!
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