Will Felix Hernandez Be Latest to Steal the AL MVP from Mike Trout?: Mike Trout is 23 years old. Hes playing in just his third full big league season. He couldnt love the 80s, because he never knew them. So its probably unfair to say hes overdue for an MVP Award. You could make a case, though, that the Los Angeles Angels outfielder has been robbed of the honor. In 2012 and again last season, Miguel Cabrera took home the prize. Its hard—no, make that impossible—to say the Detroit Tigers slugger wasnt deserving. Cabrera won the Triple Crown in 2012 with a .330 batting average, 44 home runs and 139 RBI. And he followed that up with a .348 batting average, good for another batting title, plus 44 home runs and 137 RBI in 2013. Yet Trout was arguably the more complete player each year. He didnt match Miggys Triple Crown stats in either 2012 (.326 AVG, 30 HR, 83 RBI) or 2013 (.323 AVG, 27 HR, 97 RBI). But he did other things better each season—like playing good-to-great defense and stealing 49 and 33 bases, respectively—and posted a higher WAR than Cabrera in 2012 (10.8 to 7.2) and 2013 (8.9 to 7.5). Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto told Alden Gonzalez of MLB in 2012, If there is a definition of the Most Valuable Player, I think Mike Trouts picture would be next to it. Thats not to claim that WAR (or stolen bases, or glove work) are the ultimate measure of a player. Or, again, that Cabrera didnt earn his trophies. But Trout supporters have a legitimate gripe. Yahoo Sports Jeff Passan spelled it out last November, after Cabreras second win (Trout finished second both times): My case for Trout has nothing to do with WAR. It has to do with tangible facts that modern metrics have helped teach us. Like, fielding does matter, and even if we cannot measure it with exact precision, some combination of scouting reports and metrics gives us an accurate hierarchy. And accordingly, position matters as well; a center fielder provides greater value than a third baseman, who is more important than a first baseman, and so on. Keeping track of every baserunning intricacy lets us know it wasnt just Trouts steals that dwarfed Cabreras impact on the basepaths. Trout took an extra base on teammates hits twice as often as Cabrera did, and those bases add up to runs. OK, thats the past. In the here and now, Trout is again squarely in the MVP conversation. His .289 batting average entering play Monday doesnt jump out, but hes among the American League leaders in home runs (27) and RBI (86). And he leads the AL with a 166 OPS+ (a stat thats adjusted for park) and leads all of baseball with 256 total bases. Hes been, in other words, a total player. Yet, cue deja vu, it might not be enough. Cabrera wont stand between Trout and an MVP this year; hes having another All-Star campaign, but his numbers are down across the board. Felix Hernandez, on the other hand, might. The Seattle Mariners ace surrendered two runs in five innings in his most recent start, a 4-2 loss to the Detroit Tigers. It ended an MLB record-setting streak of 16 starts with at least seven innings pitched and two runs or fewer allowed, per SportsCenter. Even with that hiccup, King Felix is enjoying a stellar season. His 1.99 ERA and 0.87 WHIP pace the AL. And his 6.0 WAR is nearly identical to Trouts 6.1. The usual caveats about pitchers—they only contribute every five days, they already have their own award—apply. But pitchers have won the MVP before, most recently another Detroit Tiger, Justin Verlander in 2011. Dave Cameron at FanGraphs thinks Hernandez has a convincing MVP case, even if hes not sure the dominant right-hander will win: While Trout has been the endorsed candidate of the nerd crowd for the last few years, I’m guessing most of us are probably more interested in rewarding starting pitchers as MVPs than the BBWAA has historically been, and if the gap between Felix and Trout grows, we could be the ones arguing against Trout as MVP this year, with the voters giving him a trophy in a year where he’s maybe not the most deserving candidate. There are other names in the mix, like Hernandezs teammate, Robinson Cano, and Jose Abreu of the Chicago White Sox. Right now, though, Trout and Hernandez are the front-runners. One edge Trout enjoys over seasons past? The Angels are winning. The Halos finished in third place in the AL West in both 2012 and 2013. This year theyre tied for the best record in baseball and sit percentage points ahead of the Oakland As entering play Monday. Whether they win the division or claim a hard-luck wild-card berth, the Angels will almost certainly be a part of the postseason picture. Fair or not, MVP voters like a guy who plays for a winner. Trout does. Then again, so does Hernandez; if everything were settled today, the Mariners would also be in the playoffs. Mike Trout is 23 years old. Hes got time. The question is whether that time is now. All statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference. Read more MLB news on BleacherReport #MLB #FelixHernandez #Opinion #MikeTrout
Posted on: Mon, 18 Aug 2014 06:33:08 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015