Wednesday, October 30, 2013

MLB Award Predictions

As the season comes to a close it's time for baseball experts around the country to make their decisions for awards. Here are our predictions for who will take home the hardware.

Rookie of the Year:

AL
Who will win? Wil Myers
Who should win? Wil Myers
Runner-up? Jose Iglesias
Top 5? Myers, Iglesias, Chris Archer, Dan Straily, Cody Allen

Despite joining the Rays in mid-June, Myers led all rookies with 53 RBI to accompany his 13 homers. Jose Iglesias is the only other rookie that stands out in the American League but a lack of offensive prowess will hurt Iglesias in the vote department. Chris Archer, Dan Straily and Cody Allen round out the top 5.

NL
Who will win? Jose Fernandez
Who should win? Jose Fernandez
Runner-up? Yasiel Puig
Top 5? Fernandez, Puig, Ryu, Shelby Miller, Julio Teheran

The biggest name in this category is rookie sensation Yasiel Puig. After joining the Dodgers in early June, Puig went on a 4 month tear that the Dodgers rode right into the playoffs. Puig annihilated NL pitching, batting .319 with 19 homers and 11 SB in just 104 games. The most deserving rookie, however, is clearly Marlins starter Jose Fernandez. Fernandez was one of the best pitchers in baseball over the past few months of the season and finished with a 2.19 ERA with 12 wins on an atrocious Marlins squad. He had 187 K's in just 172 IP as well. While the argument for both candidates is strong, Fernandez will win the ROY.

Cy Young:

AL
Who will win? Max Scherzer
Who should win? Max Scherzer
Runner up? Koji Uehara
Top 5? Scherzer, Uehara, Darvish, Felix Hernandez, Anibal Sanchez

The AL Cy Young race will be one of the most interesting races to watch. Max Scherzer is the favorite to win the award and he certainly deserves it, going 21-3 with 240 K's for the Tigers. The race gets interesting after that. With no clear favorite for runner up, we predict Koji Uehara will sneak his way into the spot. Uehara had the single best season from a reliever ever and his stats reflect it. From the time he took over the closer role in June until the end of the season, Uehara let up just 3 earned runs. 3. At one point during the stretch, Uehara retired 37 straight batters, shattering the previous record.

NL
Who will win? Clayton Kershaw
Who should win? Clayton Kershaw
Runner-up? Matt Harvey
Top 5? Kershaw, Harvey, Fernandez, Adam Wainwright, Zack Greinke

Kershaw is the clear candidate for Cy Young this year. He was undoubtedly the best pitcher in the MLB this season, throwing 236 innings while maintaining a measly 1.83 ERA along with his 16 wins. Kershaw will look to win the award for the second time in 3 years. As for runner up, Matt Harvey seems to be the most logical choice. Harvey was dominant this season before injuring himself in September, holding opposing hitters to a 2.35 ERA while winning 9 games with little run support. ROY candidate Jose Fernandez, Adam Wainwright and Zack Greinke close out the contenders.

Most Valuable Player:

AL
Who will win? Miguel Cabrera
Who should win? Miguel Cabrera
Runner-up? Chris Davis
Top 5? Cabrera, Davis, Mike Trout, Josh Donaldson, Koji Uehara

After his historic 2012 campaign, Cabrera put up nearly identical numbers in 2013. Chris Davis broke out this season, hitting 53 home runs with 138 RBI, and we predict that he will be the runner up for the MVP. After that the race is a toss-up but we predict that Mike Trout, Josh Donaldson and Koji Uehara will round out the top 5. Max Scherzer and Robinson Cano could also be in the mix.

NL
Who will win? Andrew McCutchen
Who should win? Clayton Kershaw
Runner-up? ClaytonKershaw
Top 5? McCutchen, Kershaw, Carlos Gomez, Paul Goldschmidt, Freddie Freeman

The NL MVP is truly a toss-up between McCutchen and Kershaw. While both put up worthy numbers, we feel that Kershaw was more valuable to his team and should win the award over McCutchen. We predict, however, that the voters will give the title to McCutchen. Part of this is due to the Pirates historic season but McCutchen's numbers certainly help as well. He hit .317 with 21 homers during the season along with 27 SB and 84 RBI. After McCutchen and Kershaw, we predict that Carlos Gomez, Paul Goldschmidt and Freddie Freeman will round out the top 5.

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