Skip to main content

MVP Voting is a Joke (For Some)

Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols was awarded his third National League Most Valuable Player award on Tuesday. The honor put Pujols in select company, as only Barry Bonds has won more. Stan Musial, another Cardinal won three NL MVP's also (1943, 1946, 1948). Pujols was also just the sixth player to win the NL MVP by a unanimous vote.

Overall, there was no surprise in the announcement of Pujols as MVP. He led the Major Leagues in homers (47), runs (124) and slugging percentage (.658) and he did it while batting .327. Additionally, there were no surprises when Hanley Ramirez, Ryan Howard, Prince Fielder and Troy Tulowitzki finished sprinkled behind Pujols, as their offensive numbers were all deserving of top 5 status, but not quite worthy of the top honor, by comparison. There were, however, stunning aspects relating to the voting announcements...one standout inclusion and one note worthy omission.

Would anyone agree with Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News that Giants reliever Jeremy Affeldt is deserving of an MVP vote...even if it's a 10th place vote? Surely, a 2-2 record and a 1.73 ERA in 74 pitching appearances is outstanding, but not worthy of such elite recognition. With no other pitcher on his ballot, Baggarly chose to give a nod to Jeremy Affeldt as the best hurler in the league. In a blog post, analyzing his own votes, Baggarly declared his Affeldt vote a "sore thumb" vote and admitted he could not make a case to legitimize his 10th place acknowledgment. Baggarly excused his Affeldt vote by declaring that since everyone knew Pujols would win the award, no one could make an impact with a 10th place vote. Baggarly, a Giants writer, also declared that it was his prerogative to not vote for any Dodgers, San Francisco's long time rival.

Two writers from each city, belonging to the Baseball Writers Association of America, are chosen to vote on the MVP award. Thus, 32 votes were cast. Summing up Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard's votes, he only obtained 31 votes. Howard finished third in the voting, but one writer didn't think he was among the top 10 players in the National League. There is no word on who left Howard off his/her ballot, but I'd love to see that writer attempt to justify why.

The Baseball Writers Association of America is an organization for professional journalists. The ability to vote on prestigious awards should not be taken as an opportunity to show of your fidelity to your city's team to its fans. It should not be seen as a manner by which to nominate a less than deserving player to give him a tip of your (pen?) cap. It shouldn't be a pass to omit a former MVP who led the Majors in RBI, hit 45 HR and scored 105 runs.

Comfort in one's position breeds overconfident foolishness. Decisions emerge as absurdity when they are managed by buffoons. Be respectful of your spot and slow your roll, cozy baseball scribes. A new generation of writers is surely right behind you, and if they are anything like me, they wouldn't soon take a distinction like voting for the sport's most celebrated awards for granted, and they surely would never defecate on the sport that they love by not properly performing a duty to honor its best performers.

-----------------------

According to Jayson Stark of ESPN.com, there were only two teams that didn't receive at least one vote for any of MLB's big awards (manager of the year, rookie of the year, Cy Young, MVP) this season. Those teams were the Orioles and the Mets.

Be sure to follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter HERE!


BallHype: hype it up!

Comments

Frozen4 said…
This country runs this way- get your spot, try to climb higher, abuse each spot while you have it.

Nothing wrong there.
Jay Floyd said…
Some things are bigger than the norm, though.

Just because the average guy abuses the system or takes some liberties at his job doesn't mean everyone should, or that it's right, or that anyone should ever undermine the institution of Major League Baseball.
Anonymous said…
What a great web log. I spend hours on the net reading blogs, about tons of various subjects. I have to first of all give praise to whoever created your theme and second of all to you for writing what i can only describe as an fabulous article. I honestly believe there is a skill to writing articles that only very few posses and honestly you got it. The combining of demonstrative and upper-class content is by all odds super rare with the astronomic amount of blogs on the cyberspace.

Popular posts from this blog

Diekman a Late Addition to Mesa AFL Roster

On Wednesday, Phillies lefty pitching prospect Jacob Diekman made his Arizona Fall League debut. Diekman, who was drafted in the 30th round of the 2007 amateur draft, was assigned to Mesa late, in order to increase his 2010 innings total, according to Mesa hitting coach Mark Parent, who managed Diekman in Lakewood this past season. Diekman, 23, posted a 2-0 record with 1.90 ERA in 21 games with Class A Lakewood before being promoted to High-A Clearwater on June 24th. In 24 games with the Threshers, Diekman went 0-2 with a 3.66 ERA. Combined, Diekman tossed 55 2/3 innings and held opponents to a .187 batting average against at two levels in 2010. However, after not pitching in an official game since he threw a shutout inning to wrap up the Clearwater season on September 5th, Diekman was unable to record an out as all seven batters he faced reached base, six with hits, one on an error. Diekman was charged with 5 earned runs in the outing. Diekman had spent time at instructional ball from

2022 Phillies Top Prospects Countdown: #24 RHP Cristian Hernandez

Venezuelan born right-hander Cristian Hernandez has begun to earn recognition as one of the Phillies most promising pitching prospects. Signed as a 16-year-old in 2017 for a reported $120,000, Hernandez got his professional career started the following summer as a starter for the Phillies' Red Dominican Summer League club.  There, in 13 starts, Hernandez tallied a 2-3 record with 2.57 ERA, a 1.14 WHIP as well as a 7.0 K/9 mark. An injury sidelined Hernandez in 2019 and the 2020 season was cancelled due to the global pandemic. In 2021, Hernandez saw his first regular season action in the United States, starting his season in Florida Complex League.  After two appearances there, the six-foot-three 185-pounder was promoted to the Class A Clearwater Threshers.  In 20 combined outings (17 starts), Hernandez notched a 2-7 record with a 3.57 ERA, a .228 batting average against and an 11.2 K/9 mark. Projectability is something that baseball folks like about Hernandez.  His size, consistent

Who is Your Favorite Willie 'Mays' Hayes?

PhoulBallz.com is wondering which individual who has portrayed Willie "Mays" Hayes is the favorite of the public. Hayes, of course, is the character made famous in the Major League motion picture series. In Major League , Willie "Mays" Hayes was portrayed by budding Hollywood actor Wesley Snipes, who would go on to action movie superstardom. Snipes has starred in major motion pictures like the Blade trilogy, Passenger 57 , Undisputed and many more. Snipes remains an impact Hollywood actor, despite legal troubles related to income tax evasion. Snipes was replaced for the sequel, Major League II when his busy career, and possibly the film's budget, would not allow him to return, by Omar Epps. Another budding actor, Epps had previously worked with director David S. Ward, on the film The Program , and landed the role of Hayes, who had become a Hollywood action star over the off-season that occured between the two films. Epps' career portraying athletes rolle