Yankees Can't Afford To Put This One In The Ell Column

When Jacoby Ellsbury and the Yankees agreed to a seven-year, $153MM contract this past offseason, a very loud, "WHAT?" was said in unison in the baseball world. For Jacoby Ellsbury? The guy who had one very good season and was known more for his injury plagued years. That Jacoby Ellsbury?

It's only the first year of his contract, but the Yankees would be nowhere without Ellsbury, unquestionably the team's MVP. (Masahiro Tanaka would have been in the mix had he not injured his elbow - be very glad they are shutting him down now after he experienced soreness in his elbow after his latest rehab throw.)

Ellbsury had the misfortune Friday night to slide into the league in the leg of Toronto Blue Jays' catcher Dioner Navarro. Not only was Ellsbury out at the plate, but sprained/jammed his ankle. Tests results came back negative, but Ellsbury is hurting. He sat out Saturday's game with Toronto, and though he feels he'll play on Sunday, a conservative Joe Girardi is more likely to give him another day off. Especially since the Yankees have their next to last off day on Monday.

It's an especially painful loss for a team that has had trouble scoring runs all season. The former Red Sox outfielder has been on a tear of late - 11-22 (.500), 4 HR, 9 RBI, 6 runs in his last six games - and entered Sunday leading the team with 64 RBI and 37 steals, and is second to Brett Gardner with 64 runs scored.

Like everyone else, Ellsbury has had his dry spells too. He hit just .231 in May with a .664 OPS. But as the race for the second wild card has heated up, so has Ellsbury. In 25 starts and one substitute appearance in August, his slash line is .317/.360/.525 with 5 HR, 16 RBI, 9 SB (without being thrown out), 32 hits, and 13 runs scored. Girardi has used him primarily in the three-hole in the lineup this season, but as of late has inserted him into the lead off spot. Ellsbury has a robust .926 OPS at the top of the order, compared to a .728 OPS batting behind #2, Derek Jeter in the two-hole.

Over the years, many teams have thrown left-handers at the Yankees so as not to let them take advantage of the short porch in Yankee Stadium's right field, but Ellsbury has hit better - nearly .100 points higher in his OPS - against southpaws rather than right-handers. Sunday's game is no different, though it's on the road. The Blue Jays have lefty J.A. Happ scheduled to make a start. The Yankees can only hope the first batter he faces is Jacoby Ellsbury. Otherwise, the Yankees are already going into the game trying to come from behind.

The Envelope Please

It's award season for MLB, which means it is time for the My Pinstripes awards as well.

MVP

We'll start off with the big one right away. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) award for the American League. This is a two man race - Robinson Cano of the Yankees and Josh Hamilton of the Rangers.

Hamilton led the league in many offensive categories despite missing almost the entire last month of the season. Here's the thing, Texas most likely would have still won the AL West had Hamilton had a mediocre season.

Cano had a huge breakout year with the bat and won his first Gold Glove with remarkable defense. People will point out the RBI totals of A-Rod and Mark Teixeira, the up year for Nick Swisher, etc. But Cano carried the Yankees for much of the season. Without him there's a good chance that Boston, despite all it's injuries, would have caught the Yankees for the wild card.

The My Pinstripes AL MVP goes to Robinson Cano.

The MLB AL MVP will go to Josh Hamilton.

Over in the National League it is again a two man race. Albert Pujols had one of his usual monster years, while Joey Votto was the break out star of the surprising Cincinnati Reds. Prince Albert has dominated the award, but this is Votto's for the taking. It's hard to imagine that he had to be put on the All-Star team through a last minute fan vote.

The My Pinstripes NL MVP goes to Joey Votto.

The MLB NL MVP will go to Joey Votto (otherwise the BBWAA is even crazier than you think).

CY Young

Let's start with the NL this time around. Ubaldo Jiminez owned this award in the first half. He was unstoppable. Then a rain delayed/interrupted start seemed to screw up his season. Adam Wainwright took ownership in August. he was unstoppable. And then he fell apart down the stretch.

So that only means one thing..is there a doctor in the house? Perfect game in the regular season, no-hitter in the post-season (which of course does not affect voting), and a won-loss record that would have been much better if the Phillies hadn't slumped for most of the season.

The My Pinstripes NL CY Young goes to Roy Halladay.

The MLB NL CY Young will go to Roy Halladay.

Over in the AL, it's a triumvirate of CC Sabathia, David Price, and Felix Hernandez. The King has all the totals other than wins, which is not the best indicator of a top pitcher. Sabathia and Price were both dominant at times.

The My Pinstripes AL CY Young goes to CC Sabathia.

The MLB CY Young goes to.....David Price (just a hunch).

Rookie of the Year

As I write this I already who the actual winners are, but they were my picks as well.

Neftali Feliz dominated as the Rangers closer. But where does he go from there? Do the Rangers keep him as the closer or eventually make him a starter?

Buster Posey's impact on the Giants lineup was enormous as was his defensive presence.

The My Pinstripes and MLB Rookie of the Year Winners - Neftali Feliz, Buster Posey

Manager of the Year

Many people will hand this award to Ron Washington for the job he did with the Texas Rangers. But Washington also made a lot of strange decisions during the year and played in a weak division. Ozzie Guillen and Ron Gardenhire also performed well. But...

The My Pinstripes AL Manager of the Year is Terry Francona. A few less bad breaks and some good ones and Boston might have been in the playoffs.

The MLB AL Manager of the Year will go to Ron Washington.

Over in the NL there are a number of good choices- Bruce Bochy, Bobby Cox, Dusty Baker, Bud Black.

The My Pinstripes NL Manger of the Year is Bobby Cox

The MLB NL Manager of the Year will go to Dusty Baker

There's Life After the World Series

As you may have noticed (hopefully someone noticed), I haven't done to much blogging since the World Series ended. I need to catch up some things, including sleep. A lot has been going on since the Series ended - baseball no longer goes to the back pages when the season ends. And with the way the Giants and Rangers have been playing, it's better to dwell on the 27th championship and the 2010 Yankees season. (If you're a Knicks or Nets fan, you've probably already started counting the hours, minutes, and seconds until Spring Training).

Let's start with some hardware, the non-27th championship type :)

As expected Joe Mauer cruised to the American League MVP trophy earlier today. Yankees Mark Teixeira and Derek Jeter finished 2nd and 3rd respectively. Mauer got all but one first place vote, with 4th place finisher Miguel Cabrera inexplicably picking up the lone dissenting vote. This is the same Cabrera who got loaded the night before a huge game with the White Sox as the Tigers crumbled down the stretch. Apparently one sportswriter must have drinking when he put in his/her ballot.

Here's the total vote count for Mauer and the top five finishers.
Mauer 387
Teixeira 225
Jeter 193
Cabrera 171
K. Morales 170

Mauer became just the second catcher in the last 23 years to win the award. Teixeira had been our pre-season prediction.

Alex Rodriguez (10th), Mariano Rivera (14), Robinson Cano (17) and CC Sabathia (21) were the other Yankees to receive votes.

Awards already announced:

The Managers of the Year were the Angels' Mike Scioscia (whom I correctly predicted would take the award) and the Rockies Jim Tracy. I expected the Angels to run away with the AL West, but Scioscia had to really do a great job this year to overcome injuries and the death of Nick Adenhardt. Joe Girardi finished 3rd behind Scioscia and Ron Gardenhire.

Tracey meanwhile took a slumping Rockies squad to the NL wild card. (Our Spring Training pick was a sentimental one- Bobby Cox. He finished 5th in the voting.).

Rookie of the Year honors in the AL went to the A's (and New Jersey's) Andrew Bailey, who grabbed the team's closer role. The Marlins' Chris Coghlan took the NL award. I had predicted prior to the season that Baltimore's Matt Wieters and the Cards' Jason Motte would pick up the awards. Neither received a vote, though Wieters did finish the season in strong fashion.

Bailey's fellow NJ native, Rick Porcello, came in the 3rd in the AL voting.

2009 AL roy voting

Player	1st	2nd	3rd	Points
Andrew Bailey	13	6	5	88
Elvis Andrus	8	6	7	65
Rick Porcello	7	8	5	64
Jeff Niemann	x	5	6	21
Gordon Beckham	x	2	4	10
Brett Anderson	x	1	1	4

2009 nl roy voting

Player	1st	2nd	3rd	Points
Chris Coghlan	17	6	2	105
J.A. Happ	10	11	11	94
Tommy Hanson	2	6	9	37
Andrew McCutchen	2	5	x	25
Casey McGehee	1	3	4	18
Randy Wells	x	1	x	3
Garrett Jones	x	x	2	2
Everth Cabrera	x	x	1	1
Dexter Fowler	x	x	1	1
Gerardo Parra	x	x	1	1
Colby Rasmus	x	x	1	1

The AL Cy Young went to KC's Zack Greinke. The Royals managed just 65 wins this season, with nearly a quarter of them (16) won by Greinke. Only Steve Carlton's 27 wins on a 59-win team may have been more impressive. Our pre-season pick CC Sabathia, finished fourth in the voting.

The National League award went to Tim Lincecum for the second consecutive season. I personally felt that Chris Carpenter would win the award. I mistakenly chose Johan Santana prior to the start of the season. Boy, that was a mistake.

AL Cy Young Award Voting

Player	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts
Zack Greinke, KC	25	3		134
Felix Hernandez, SEA	2	23	1	80
Justin Verlander, DET	1		9	14
CC Sabathia, NYY		2	7	13
Roy Halladay, TOR			11	11

NL Cy Young Award Voting

Player	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts.
Tim Lincecum, SF	11	12	9	100
Chris Carpenter, STL	9	14	7	94
Adam Wainwright, STL	12	5	15	90
Javier Vazquez, ATL		1		3
Dan Haren, ARI			1	1

The NL MVP will be announced tomorrow with Albert Pujols to pick up another momento for his trophy case. Prince Fielder and Ryan Howard should finish 2-3.

AL MVP Race Heating Up

For Baseball Digest:

AL MVP, Wild Card Races Heating Up

August 21st, 2009

Filed Under: Yankees

Tags: AL MVP • AL WIld Card • Alex Rodriguez • Derek Jeter • Joe Mauer • Justin Morneau • Mark Teixeira • Yankees vs. Rangers • Yankees vs. Red Sox

The Yankees will have a direct impact on the American League Wild Card race as they face the Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers in the next week. The outcome of those games may not only help to determine the Wild Card winner, but the AL MVP winner as well.

The two biggest names being bandied about for AL MVP are Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer and Yankees 1st baseman Mark Teixeira. But a long time Yankee, Derek Jeter, may be the true AL MVP. The Yankees are 25-8 since the All-Star break and much of that can be contributed to the play of their captain. Jeter has played in all 33 games, putting up a .357/.392/.497 split with 5 home runs and 17 RBI. He’s also scored 25 runs and played Gold Glove caliber shortstop.

Jeter has been even hotter of late. On the just completed 7 game roat trip (5-2), Jeter was 16-29 (.552) with 6 multi-hit games (he’s also had 5 3-hit games in his last 10 games played). Overall Jeter is batting .331-15-54 with 81 runs scored and 21 steals.

The Mauer-Teixeira debate has brought fiery response from fans of the two teams and created a lot of fodder for the beat and baseball writers that cover the two squads. Mauer has been phenomenal after missing the start of the season due to injury. He never had more than 13 home runs in a season prior to 2009, but has already hit 25 dingers. In addition to 77 RBI,Mauer is hitting a torrid .378. He and 1st baseman Justin Morneau have carried the otherwise limp Minnesota lineup. And of course, Mauer plays the most physically, and possibly mentally, demanding position in baseball.

The knock against Mauer is, of course, the lackluster season the Twins are having. Minnesota is 58-63, well out of the AL Central and Wild Card races. Though Minny has struggled since the break, going just 13-19, Mauer has been even hotter, hitting .388-10-28 with an 1.126 OPS in 32 games. In addition, Mauer’s defense and game calling skills are among the best in baseball.

But where is the delineation between “Player of the Year” and “Most Valuable Player”. The latter refers to the most valuable to the team. While the Twins would not be as good withoutMauer, they’ve fallen out of both the division and Wild Card races. To me, that is a major knock against the player in question when it comes to MVP voting.

The absurd knock on Jeter, is that he is surrounded by so many good players, that it doesn’t really matter who the Yankees shortstop is/was. But would the Yankees be anywhere this year withoutJeter’s consistent play and table setting skills at the top of the order (and at 35 yrs of age to boot).

Teixeira will also suffer a lack of recognition because of the all the All-Star caliber ability of his teammates. Teixeira is a notoriously slow starter, who started getting hot just when Alex Rodriguez returned and was able to protect him in the lineup. But Teixeira would have been putting up those numbers with or without A-Rod. Teixeira has averaged 34 home runs and 113 RBI over his first six big league seasons. It’s been made even more impressive by the fact the last two seasons were split between the two leagues.

But enough about the past (kudos to Mark McGwire). Teixeira is putting up his usual numbers this season. He’s hit 31 home runs and driven in 89 runs in 117 games. He’s posted a .937 OPS and played a Gold Glove 1st base that has helped improved the entire Yankees infield defense.

So who will win the MVP? Probably Mauer. Based on the love/hate/anti-NY biased that affects all of the voting, Mauer probably will win. Most Yankees fans won’t have a with that. Especially if Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira are hoisting the World Series trophy.

You Can Go Home Again

Especially if your name is Jason Giambi. The former leader of the Oakland A's playoff teams of 2000-2001 has re-signed with the A's after 7 years in New York. Giambi passed his physical, enabling him to put his John Hancock on a 1 year, $5.25 million contract to play for Oakland.

Giambi built his reputation as a slugger, and steroid user, while averaging 35 home runs and 122 RBI from 1998-2001. He won the AL MVP Award his last season in the Bay area before bolting to the Yankees for 7 years and $120 million.

His time in New York was a mixed bag of home runs, walks, strikeouts, injuries, golden thongs, and of course, the steroid scandal. While he screwed up, he still had the backing of his teammates, most notably the Yankees captain, Derek Jeter, and was well liked by the fans and media.

Good luck in Oakland, Big G.

You Can Go Home Again

Especially if your name is Jason Giambi. The former leader of the Oakland A's playoff teams of 2000-2001 has re-signed with the A's after 7 years in New York. Giambi passed his physical, enabling him to put his John Hancock on a 1 year, $5.25 million contract to play for Oakland.

Giambi built his reputation as a slugger, and steroid user, while averaging 35 home runs and 122 RBI from 1998-2001. He won the AL MVP Award his last season in the Bay area before bolting to the Yankees for 7 years and $120 million.

His time in New York was a mixed bag of home runs, walks, strikeouts, injuries, golden thongs, and of course, the steroid scandal. While he screwed up, he still had the backing of his teammates, most notably the Yankees captain, Derek Jeter, and was well liked by the fans and media.

Good luck in Oakland, Big G.

Pedroia Captures AL MVP

When Dustin Pedroia first came on to the scene early in the 2007 season he looked completely over matched. But GM Theo Epstein and manager Terry Francona knew better. Pedroia went on to win the AL Rookie of the Year Award as well as a World Series title. Now he has an MVP award to go along with it.

We can't stand the little gnat, but we do respect the way he plays and it's that play that helped him beat out Justin Morneau for the MVP award. With David Ortiz banged up and Manny Ramierz being Manny, Pedroia helped lead the Red Sox back to the playoffs with a .326 average, 4 points less than the batting title winner, Joe Mauer.

Pedroia added 17 home runs, 83 RBI, 20 stolen bases and led the league in runs scored (118) and multi-hit games (61). He also became the fifth second baseman in baseball history with 200 hits, 50 doubles, 100 runs scored, and at least 15 home runs. He took 16 of the 28 first place votes.

Morneau, who we would have selected, carried an offensively inept Twins team for much of the season. The Twins came up short in the AL Central and Wild card races, but they wouldn't have been close without Morneau, who won the MVP award in 2006. The first baseman hit .300 with 23 home runs and a second league best 129 RBI. He received 7 first place votes and finished 60 votes behind Pedroia.

Kevin Youkilis and Joe Mauer each received 2 first place votes, while Francisco Rodriguez picked up 1. Alex Rodriguez was the top Yankees finisher with 45 votes, good enough for 8th place, while Mike Mussina finished 19th with 3 votes. How in the world did Mariano Rivera not get one vote?

As usual, our pre-season pick, Curtis Granderson, received no votes.

2008 AL MVP Award Voting
Player, Club	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Points
Dustin Pedroia, BOS	16	6	4	1							317
Justin Morneau, MIN	7	7	6	3	3	1	1				257
Kevin Youkilis, BOS	2	4	4	9	2	4	1	2			201
Joe Mauer, MIN	2	8	1	3	4	3	3	2	1		188
Carlos Quentin, CWS		1	4	8	4	4	4		1	1	160
Francisco Rodriguez, LAA	1	2	6	1	6		3	2		2	143
Josh Hamilton, TEX			2	2	3	7	3	2	4	3	112
Alex Rodriguez, NYY					1	1	4	1	4	7	45
Carlos Pena, TB			1		2		2	3	2	3	44
Grady Sizemore, CLE						2	1	5	6	1	42
Evan Longoria, TB						2	2	5	2	1	38
Cliff Lee, CLE				1	1	1	1		1		24
Miguel Cabrera, DET						1		1	4	1	17
Vladimir Guerrero, LAA							2	2	1		16
Jermaine Dye, CWS					1			2		2	14
Aubrey Huff, BAL						1			2	3	12
Milton Bradley, TEX						1	1				9
Jason Bartlett, TB					1						6
Mike Mussina, NYY								1			3
Raul Ibanez, SEA										1	1
Ian Kinsler, TEX										1	1
Ichiro Suzuki, SEA										1	1
Mark Teixeira, LAA										1	1

Pedroia Captures AL MVP

When Dustin Pedroia first came on to the scene early in the 2007 season he looked completely over matched. But GM Theo Epstein and manager Terry Francona knew better. Pedroia went on to win the AL Rookie of the Year Award as well as a World Series title. Now he has an MVP award to go along with it.

We can't stand the little gnat, but we do respect the way he plays and it's that play that helped him beat out Justin Morneau for the MVP award. With David Ortiz banged up and Manny Ramierz being Manny, Pedroia helped lead the Red Sox back to the playoffs with a .326 average, 4 points less than the batting title winner, Joe Mauer.

Pedroia added 17 home runs, 83 RBI, 20 stolen bases and led the league in runs scored (118) and multi-hit games (61). He also became the fifth second baseman in baseball history with 200 hits, 50 doubles, 100 runs scored, and at least 15 home runs. He took 16 of the 28 first place votes.

Morneau, who we would have selected, carried an offensively inept Twins team for much of the season. The Twins came up short in the AL Central and Wild card races, but they wouldn't have been close without Morneau, who won the MVP award in 2006. The first baseman hit .300 with 23 home runs and a second league best 129 RBI. He received 7 first place votes and finished 60 votes behind Pedroia.

Kevin Youkilis and Joe Mauer each received 2 first place votes, while Francisco Rodriguez picked up 1. Alex Rodriguez was the top Yankees finisher with 45 votes, good enough for 8th place, while Mike Mussina finished 19th with 3 votes. How in the world did Mariano Rivera not get one vote?

As usual, our pre-season pick, Curtis Granderson, received no votes.

2008 AL MVP Award Voting
Player, Club	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Points
Dustin Pedroia, BOS	16	6	4	1							317
Justin Morneau, MIN	7	7	6	3	3	1	1				257
Kevin Youkilis, BOS	2	4	4	9	2	4	1	2			201
Joe Mauer, MIN	2	8	1	3	4	3	3	2	1		188
Carlos Quentin, CWS		1	4	8	4	4	4		1	1	160
Francisco Rodriguez, LAA	1	2	6	1	6		3	2		2	143
Josh Hamilton, TEX			2	2	3	7	3	2	4	3	112
Alex Rodriguez, NYY					1	1	4	1	4	7	45
Carlos Pena, TB			1		2		2	3	2	3	44
Grady Sizemore, CLE						2	1	5	6	1	42
Evan Longoria, TB						2	2	5	2	1	38
Cliff Lee, CLE				1	1	1	1		1		24
Miguel Cabrera, DET						1		1	4	1	17
Vladimir Guerrero, LAA							2	2	1		16
Jermaine Dye, CWS					1			2		2	14
Aubrey Huff, BAL						1			2	3	12
Milton Bradley, TEX						1	1				9
Jason Bartlett, TB					1						6
Mike Mussina, NYY								1			3
Raul Ibanez, SEA										1	1
Ian Kinsler, TEX										1	1
Ichiro Suzuki, SEA										1	1
Mark Teixeira, LAA										1	1