Get the Trophies and Banners Ready!

Jason Budden: Un-Common Sense?

It’s already May, so why not hand out some hardware. Who cares if the season only has one month in the books…let’s crown a champion!

But first, the individual awards…

American League

MVP

Manny Ramirez, Boston Red Sox, .315, 21 Runs, 6 HR's, 23 RBI, .962 OPS
As of May 5, the top player performances in the AL pale in comparison to the NL. If I were to rank the top 25 position players in the league so far in 2008, that list would include three players from the AL, four at most. That leaves me with little to pick from (seriously, this is brutal). Manny gets the nod based mainly on the fact that David Ortiz is hitting .225 and Mike Lowell is hitting .237 and has driven in two runs this season. Manny has been forced to drive the ship, and he has done an admirable job, leading the Sox to 21 wins, tied for the most in the Majors.

Runner Up

Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers, .300, 16 Runs, 6 HR's, 33 RBI, .878 OPS
If the Rangers weren’t in the basement of the AL West, he would have been my choice. What a remarkable turnaround Hamilton has made over the past few years.

Cy Young

Ervin Santana, Los Angeles Angels, 6-0, 2.02 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 38 K’s
Santana has been a bust the past few years. He was a prospect with outstanding talent that, up to last year, hadn’t delivered on his promise. After going 12-8 with a 4.65 ERA in 2005 and 16-8 with a 4.28 ERA in 2006, many of baseball’s experts picked him to have a breakout year in 2007, but he disappointed with a 7-14 record and a 5.76 ERA, giving up 26 HR in 26 starts. Finally, he has realized what everyone has been saying for a few years. He has the stuff to succeed, and is doing it in 2008. On May 5, he went nine innings giving up four hits and zero runs while striking out nine and walking none of the Kansas City Royals batters he faced.

Runner Up #1

Jonathan Papelbon, Boston Red Sox, 2-0, 10 Saves, 0 Blown Saves, 1.65 ERA, 21 K’s, 1 Walk. He continues to be the best closer in the game, by far, enough said.

Runner Up #2

Cliff Lee, Cleveland Indians, 5-0, 0.96 ERA, 0.56 WHIP, 32 K’s
Unheralded started behind C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona, Lee has put up better numbers, and has five of the Indians 14 total wins.

Rookie of the Year

Jacoby Ellsbury, Boston Red Sox, .275, 25 Runs, 3 HR's, 12 RBI, 11 SB
Ellsbury showed the world that he was ready to make an impact at the Major League level when he hit .360 in 25 at bats during the 2008 Postseason. Terry Francona came into 2008 expecting Ellsbury to contribute as an everyday player and he has not disappointed. In addition to his success on offense, he has not committed an error while playing all three outfield positions including 17 starts in centerfield.

Runner Up

Armando Galarraga, Detroit Tigers, 2-1, 1.87 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 15 K’s
The only bright spot in a pitching rotation that has been brutal. Galarraga leads the club’s starting pitchers in ERA by a full two runs per nine innings over Jeremy Bonderman (4.17 ERA).

We’ll review the National League next time and hand out some more early season awards.