While CC and Cano are Close, They're Not Award Winners

There has been a lot of talk lately about two Yankees and their chances at some pretty big awards. Cano is one of the candidates for AL MVP, while CC Sabathia is close to the top of the AL Cy Young race.

Both have had tremendous seasons, but neither deserve the awards. Let me start by saying that these awards do not go to the most valuable player and pitcher in each league, but to the guys who put up the best numbers. That's how it's been for years and it won't change this season.

As for Robinson Cano, sure, he's been the Yankees MVP, but with a .325/.387/.566 triple slash, 25 HR and 86 RBI, he's far behind the two real candidates for MVP: Josh Hamilton and Miguel Cabrera. Hamilton is having a ridiculous season, hitting 362/.411/.633 with 28 HR and 88 RBI, and Cabrera has been equally impressive, hitting .338/.427/.625 with 31 and 102. Looking at OPS, OPS+ and WAR you can see the separation between the top two and Robbie:

• Josh Hamilton - OPS: 1.044, OPS+: 172, WAR: 7.0
• Miguel Cabrera - OPS: 1.052, OPS+: 185, WAR: 5.6
• Robinson Cano - OPS: .953, OPS+: 158, WAR: 6.0

Based on Cano's overall value, it's closer than the basic numbers tell you, but it's still a two-horse race and Cano ain't one of them. Remember, this award is rarely given to the most valuable even if that's the name of it.

As for CC's Cy Young candidacy, he's probably closer to the top than Cano is to the MVP award, but still, there are four guys having better seasons; Clay Buchholz, Felix Hernandez, Trevor Cahill, and David Price.

It's worth mentioning now that I believe wins and losses for a pitcher might be the most misleading stat in the game, so I'm throwing everyone's win total out the window. Let's look at some stats:

• Clay Buchholz - ERA 2.26, WHIP: 1.20,, K/9: 6.20, FIP: 3.60
  
• Felix Hernandez - ERA: 2.51, WHIP: 1.13, K/9: 8.36, FIP: 3.02
• Trevor Cahill - ERA: 2.54, WHIP: 0.99, K/9: 5.40, FIP: 4.06
• David Price - ERA: 2.97, WHIP: 1.26, K/9: 8.33, FIP: 3.40
  
• CC Sabathia - ERA: 3.02, WHIP: 1.22, K/9: 7.24, FIP: 3.58
  

If you look at that list and believe CC is the Cy Young award winner, than you may need to take off those rose colored Yankee glasses.

There's no reason why CC or Cano can't have a great final month+ and storm into the lead of either of these two races, but you know what, this is the Yankees and personal achievements are utterly meaningless. These kinds of things don't even belong in the minds of Yankees fans. Go win another ring--that's all that matters anyway.

OK, disagree away...

And Now For Some Good News About A Yankees Executive

Earlier, we heard about Mark Newman's screw up down in Tampa last night, but here's some good news about Yankees assistant GM Jean Afterman. It was announced today that she is being honored as one of Women in Sports and Events 2010 WISE Women of the Year.

Aftermanm, the Yanks' assistant GM since 2001, is probably best known by Yankees fans for being one of the major players in the Hideki Matsui signing. Cashman has even given her credit for that signing in the past.

Congrats!

What a Difference a Year Makes For A-Rod

Remember last spring, when A-Rod had his steroid press conference and broke down while thanking his teammates for sticking by and supporting him? Well, last night he got choked up again, but this time it was for winning the Babe Ruth Award as the New York chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America's postseason MVP. The award was presented by Babe Ruth's granddaughter.

Here's more from the AP:

Alex Rodriguez looked at the award he just received from Babe Ruth's granddaughter with big eyes and a broad grin. It was as if he almost couldn't believe it was his.

"Postseason MVP. Wow," Rodriguez said Saturday night. Pausing for effect he added, "What's next, the good guy award?"

...

And after he told fans at the dinner that "he'd stick to the script of 2009 and keep it very, very brief," he choked up, taking a long pause -- save for a nervous laugh -- to look down at the podium and smile awkwardly.

Unlike the extended pause he took during his steroids news conference, this one was broken when an attendee -- the dinner was crowded with Yankees fans -- shouted, "You're the best, A-Rod!"

...

"I've been to these dinners a couple of times to receive MVP awards and those, I'm very proud of those accomplishments," he said. "But none of those accomplishments will ever compare to the feeling you get from being part of a team that won a world championship. Like Albert [Pujols] said there's nothing like winning a World championship."

If you told me a year ago that A-Rod was going to go from disgraced superstar being outed for steroid use to winning a postseason MVP award and a ring I would have said you were crazy.

Derek Jeter also received two awards, the Joe DiMaggio Toast of the Town Award, and shared the Willie, Mickey and the Duke Award with teammates Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte. However, the Captain was not on hand to receive the awards.

Another Award For The Captain

Jeter made it four awards to go with the Yankees 27th World Series win when he was named the Daily News' New Yorker of the Year for 2009. He has already won the Hank Aaron Award, the Roberto Clemente Award, and the SI Sportsman of the Year.

Okay, let us here grant for the record what Derek Jeter did not do. He did not cure cancer. He did not save the polar bears. Nor was he the first shortstop elected President or named to the Supreme Court. One questions whether he could have landed a jet safely in the Hudson River.

But Jeter did accomplish something far more substantial than hitting for average and fielding his position. All across professional sports are lots of guys who put up big numbers and collect enormous paychecks for their production. They come and go from city to city. They are cheered. But hardly are they beloved.

Jeter is beloved. And that powerful bond - player to team to fans to city - has enabled him to buoy the pride of millions year in and year out, this year most of all.

...

This is a man who has the qualities adults admire and children can look up to. Somehow he combines enormous talent with hard work, riches with responsibility, fantastic success with confident modesty and intense competitiveness with true sportsmanship.

Jeter must hate to see 2009 go, it's been a great year for him.

Jeter's Sportsman of the Year Video

Also, here's is Tom Verducci's article on Jeter's award.

Jeter Wins Sportsman of the Year

It was leaked last week by Gawker that Jeter was going to win the award, and today it was made official. Jeter has been named as the 56th Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year, and the issue will hit newsstands this Wednesday.

Said Sports Illustrated Group Editor Terry McDonell, "Derek Jeter has always presented himself with class; he does numerous good works for the community with his Turn 2 Foundation, which is one of the most efficient, effective foundations of its kind; and he's extremely generous with not just his money but with his time, which in many cases is more valuable. He also had another signature year on the field."

Congrats to The Captain.

Gawker: Jeter Is SI's Sportsman of the Year

Gawker (hat-tip to Zell's Pinstripe Blog) is reporting that they've received word via an email tipster that Derek Jeter will be named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year. According to the tipster, "the magazine will hand the title to the Yankees captain on Monday in a story by baseball writer Tom Verducci."

The award is giving to "the athlete or team whose performance that year most embodies the spirit of sportsmanship and achievement." I'd say that fits Jeter quite well.

I guess we'll see how legit the report is soon enough, but if it is congrats to The Captain, the honor is well deserved.

Pujols Unanimous Pick For NL MVP

Like Joe Mauer yesterday, today's announcement of the NL MVP comes as no surprise. Albert Pujols received all of the possible 32 first-place votes and finished off his third MVP season batting .327/.443/.658 with 47 home runs and 135 RBI. Florida's Hanley Ramirez finished second, with Ryan Howard coming in third. The rest of the voting results can be found here.

No Met received any votes.

Mauer Wins MVP, Tex and Jeter Finish 2nd and 3rd

Like everyone pretty much expected, Joe Mauer was named AL MVP today. Mauer clearly had the best year out of anyone in the the league, finishing the year hitting .365/.444/.587 with 28 HR and 96 RBI. He nearly won a unanimous vote, taking 27 of 28 first-place votes and finishing with 387 point. The only other player to receive a first place vote was Miguel Cabrera, who finished fourth in the voting. I wonder which writer voting for him.

Mark Teixeira finished second in the voting with 225 point, Derek Jeter finished third with 193 points, Four other Yankees made the top 21; Alex Rodriguez finished 10th, Mariano finished 14th, Robinson Cano finished 18th, and CC finished 21st. The complete results can be seen here.

Lincecum Wins Second Straight NL Cy Young

In a very close contest, San Francisco's Tim Lincecum beat out St. Louis right-handers Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright to take home the 2009 NL Cy Young award. In 32 games for the Giants this season, Lincecum went 15-7, with a 2.48 ERA, a 1.05 WHIP, and in 225.1 innings pitched he allowed 62 earned runs on 168 hits, walked 68, and struck out an NL best 261.

Here's how the voting went down:

	1st	2nd	3rd	Points
Tim Lincecum	11	12	9	100
Chris Carpenter	9	14	7	94
Adam Wainwright	12	5	15	90
Javier Vazquez		1		3
Dan Haren			1	1

Tracy, Scioscia Named Managers of the Year

Anaheim's Mike Scioscia and Colorado's Jim Tracy were named AL and NL Managers of the Year today.

Tracy probably deserved it more than Scioscia did, but they both did a great job this year. One dealt with death and injuries on a solid roster, the other turned a bad team into a good one over night. Yankees manager Joe Girardi finished third in the AL voting.

Here's how the voting went down:

AMERICAN LEAGUE VOTING:

	1st	2nd	3rd	Total
Mike Scioscia	15	10	1	106
Ron Gardenhire	6	12	6	72
Joe Girardi	4	3	5	34
Don Wakamatsu	2	2	3	19
Ron Washington	1	1	11	19
Jim Leyland			2	2

NATIONAL LEAGUE VOTING:

	1st	2nd	3rd	Total
Jim Tracy	29	2		151
Tony La Russa	2	13	6	55
Joe Torre	1	7	7	33
Bobby Cox		3	6	21
Bruce Bochy		5	3	18
Charlie Manuel		2	4	10
Fredi Gonzalez			4	4
Bud Black			2	2

Does Girardi have a shot at Manager of the Year?

If you ask me I'd say no; the voters pay too much attention to payroll so I think that will hurt him tremendously. Anthony DiComo of Yankees.com took a look at his chances yesterday, here's some of what he had to say:

His job [with the Marlins], guiding a team of young players to a fourth-place finish, was quite different from his job this season, when he was charged with meshing three high-profile free agents into a clubhouse mixed with veterans and youngsters. When CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira and A.J. Burnett all began thriving during their first seasons in pinstripes, Girardi received a fair portion of the credit.

Girardi has also endured his share of criticism. His bold managerial moves in the postseason made waves, from his strict management of his bullpen to the most controversial topic of all, his use of a three-man rotation. That strategy, made possible by Sabathia's willingness to pitch twice on short rest, worked out. Other strategies did not.

Most often this season, Girardi was cautious. When Alex Rodriguez returned from hip surgery and began to struggle around midseason, Girardi gave the star slugger an entire weekend off and made sure to provide him with regular rest thereafter. When Hideki Matsui showed rust on his surgically repaired knees, Girardi forbade him from playing the outfield, resting him in nine consecutive Interleague games in June and confining him to a pinch-hitting role during the three World Series games at Citizens Bank Park.

Matsui returned from his Interleague benching on a tear, then was named the World Series MVP despite starting only three of the games.

DiComo also pointed out that while Girardi was great, he will lose votes because of the payroll and the quality roster he had to work with, but with the exception of a week here and there Joe Girardi did nearly everything right this year.

Regardless of whether he wins the award or not he deserves a ton of credit from us fans for what he did this season. There were times where I had my doubts, but he got them where they're supposed to be and you can't take that away from him.

Off the field he was just as good, handling the media flawlessly after a rocky first season, handling controversy and minimizing distractions, and even organizing that pool tournament at the beginning of Spring Training so that the team could bond. Many players pointed to that moment as the time this team came together.

Between the off the field stuff, keeping everyone rested and healthy, making bold moves (the three-man rotation throughout the playoffs) regardless of the second guessing it could create, and bringing a clubhouse together, he did as good a job as any manager out there.

CC Happy With His Ring

From George A. King III:

CC Sabathia required two words to describe being a World Series winner rather than copping a second Cy Young award.

"Much happier," the Yankees' ace lefty wrote in a text message yesterday after Kansas City's Zach Greinke was named this year's AL Cy Young winner.

He also wasn't too surprised by the outcome of the voting:

"I wasn't surprised at all," Sabathia said of Greinke winning. "He definitely deserved it. He had a 2.16 ERA in the American League. I don't care how many wins you have, that's pretty good."

I wouldn't expect CC to say anything different. He's a Yankee now, he knows what's really important.

Greinke Wins Cy Young Award

It was just announced that Zack Greinke is this year's American League Cy Young award winner. After the year he had this was almost a no-brainer. In 33 games this year for the Royals, Greinke went 16-8 with a ridiculous 2.16 ERA and 1.07 WHIP. In 229.1 innings pitches he allowed just 55 earned runs on 195 hits, walked 51 and struck out 242. He also held opposing batters to a .230 batting average.

Here's how the voting went down:

	1st	2nd	3rd	Points
Z. Greinke	25	3		134
F. Hernandez	2	23	1	80
J. Verlander	1		9	14
CC Sabathia		2	7	13
R. Halladay			11	11

I'm sure CC will be fine with his World Series ring and ALCS MVP.

Bailey, Coghlan Take Home ROY Honors

Oakland's Andrew Bailey and Florida's Chris Coghlan were named American and National League Rookies of the Year today.

Bailey went 6-3, with 26 saves in 30 chances, and posted a 1.84 ERA, an 0.88 WHIP, and in 83.1 innings struck out 91 and walked 24.

Cohglin hit .321/.390/.460 with 9 HR and 47 RBI in 128 games for Florida.

If you'd like to check out the voting you can see the AL here and the NL here.

Joe's Award Week Predictions

AL ROY: Elvis Andrus - TEX

NL ROY: J.A. Happ - PHI

AL Manager of the Year: Mike Scioscia - LAA
NL Manager of the Year: Jim Tracy - COL

AL Cy Young: Zack Greinke - KC
NL Cy Young: Tim Lincecum - SF

AL MVP: Joe Mauer - MIN (It pains me to put this here, I really want Jeter to get one)
NL MVP: Albert Pujols - STL

BTW, the This Year in Baseball Awards come out later, they're actually pretty cool awards. The categories include best Hitter, Starter, Moment, Oddity, Play, Defensive Player, Performance, Unsung Hero, Setup Man, Closer, Rookie, Manager, Executive, Postseason Moment.

Sunday Night Open Thread: Awards Week Coming

Starting tomorrrow and concluding next Tuesday, the BBWAA awards will be revealed.

Monday: AL and NL Rookie of the Year Awards.
Tuesday: AL Cy Young Award.
Wednesday: AL and NL Manager of the Year Awards.
Thursday: NL Cy Young Award.
Monday, Nov. 23: AL Most Valuable Player Award.
Tuesday, Nov. 24: NL Most Valuable Player Award.

All announcements will be made at 2 p.m. eastern time.

Got any predictions? Post 'em below. Here's mine:

AL ROY: Elvis Andrus

NL ROY: Chris Coghlan

AL Manager of the Year: Ron Washington

NL Manager of the Year: Jim Tracy

AL Cy Young: Zack Greinke

NL Cy Young: Chris Carpenter

AL MVP: Joe Mauer

NL MVP: Albert Pujols

Besides that you can talk about the day in football, the hot stove, tonight's Pats-Colts game, or anything else.