AL MVP (1 Viewer)

[the moops]

OPS+

Youkilis 142

Morneau 139

Hamilton 137

Mauer 136

Pena 134

Sizemore 131

Pedroia 123

WPA

Mauer 4.72

Morneau 4.07

Pena 3.97

Hamilton 3.53

Sizemore 3.31

Pedroia 3.14

Youkilis 1.99

VORP

Sizemore 64.2

Pedroia 59.8

Hamilton 55.1

Mauer 54.6

Youkilis 51.7

Morneau 50.3

EQA

Mauer .319

Morneau .315

Youkilis .310

Hamilton .310

Sizemore .309

Pena .308

Pedroia .297

And some traditional stats. And their ranking in the AL (top 10 only)

OBP

2.Mauer .417

6.Youkilis .386

10.Morneau .380



OPS

4.Youkilis .945

6.Hamilton .902

8.Morneau .894

10.Sizemore .889



R

1.Pedroia 116

8.Sizemore 97

9.Mauer 96



Hits

1.Pedroia 208

3.Morneau 184

4.Hamilton 183

Total Bases

2.Hamilton 320

4.Pedroia 313

5.Sizemore 312

6.Morneau 307

9.Youkilis 293

RBI

1.Morneau 128

3.Hamilton 124

4.Youkilis 109

9.Pena 100

Runs Created

1.Sizemore 130

2.Hamilton 125

4.Perdoia 120

6.Morneau 115

8.Youkilis 114

There seems to be no clear winner in the AL this year. Nobody is hammering 60 HRs, nobody is clearly pushing their team to a playoff birth. Some of the leaders have missed too much time to have a shot (Pena, Quentin).

My clear choice would be Mauer. To do what he does offensively, all while playing the hardest defensive position, is amazing. In comparison to other catchers, he is heads and shoulder above them. If you replaced him with an average AL catcher, the Twins would suffer greatly. The same argument, IMO, should help Pedroia. And likewise, it should hurt all the first basemen (Morneau, Pena, Youkilis, etc). Sizemore had a fantastic year, but unfortunately he won't get too much love because of the sukitude of the Indians. Hamilton looked like the MVP in the first half, but his slugging and counting numbers have gone down drastically in the 2nd half.

My votes

Mauer

Pedroia

Sizemore

Morneau

Pena

Hamilton

Youkilis

 

[Thunderlips]

I would have said Pedroria....but all those fancy stats seem to disagree.

 

[the moops]

I would have said Pedroria....but all those fancy stats seem to disagree.

Thanks for the in depth response.

 

[Thunderlips]

I would have said Pedroria....but all those fancy stats seem to disagree.

Thanks for the in depth response.

I watch games.... Pedroria was the man on that team this year.

 

[the moops]

I would have said Pedroria....but all those fancy stats seem to disagree.

Thanks for the in depth response.

I watch games.... Pedroria was the man on that team this year.

Yes, he was.I assume you also watched Twins games then? Or are you completely discounting any Twin (just as you discounted Pujols) because they are not going to make the playoffs.

 

[TitusIII]

I'd still vote for Quentin...but I'm biased...

 

[Thunderlips]

I would have said Pedroria....but all those fancy stats seem to disagree.

Thanks for the in depth response.

I watch games.... Pedroria was the man on that team this year.

Yes, he was.I assume you also watched Twins games then? Or are you completely discounting any Twin (just as you discounted Pujols) because they are not going to make the playoffs.

I watched more than a few of Mauer's at-bats.......along with Pujol's at bats. Team success matters though....particularly for the playoff bound.

 

[igbomb]

No way are there seven guys that are better MVP candidates than Cabrera.

 

[the moops]

No way are there seven guys that are better MVP candidates than Cabrera.

Make a case. You declaring so isn't real convincing.

 

[Kuz]

OPS+

Youkilis 142

Morneau 139

Hamilton 137

Mauer 136

Pena 134

Sizemore 131

Pedroia 123

WPA

Mauer 4.72

Morneau 4.07

Pena 3.97

Hamilton 3.53

Sizemore 3.31

Pedroia 3.14

Youkilis 1.99

VORP

Sizemore 64.2

Pedroia 59.8

Hamilton 55.1

Mauer 54.6

Youkilis 51.7

Morneau 50.3

EQA

Mauer .319

Morneau .315

Youkilis .310

Hamilton .310

Sizemore .309

Pena .308

Pedroia .297

And some traditional stats. And their ranking in the AL (top 10 only)

OBP

2.Mauer .417

6.Youkilis .386

10.Morneau .380



OPS

4.Youkilis .945

6.Hamilton .902

8.Morneau .894

10.Sizemore .889



R

1.Pedroia 116

8.Sizemore 97

9.Mauer 96



Hits

1.Pedroia 208

3.Morneau 184

4.Hamilton 183

Total Bases

2.Hamilton 320

4.Pedroia 313

5.Sizemore 312

6.Morneau 307

9.Youkilis 293

RBI

1.Morneau 128

3.Hamilton 124

4.Youkilis 109

9.Pena 100

Runs Created

1.Sizemore 130

2.Hamilton 125

4.Perdoia 120

6.Morneau 115

8.Youkilis 114

There seems to be no clear winner in the AL this year. Nobody is hammering 60 HRs, nobody is clearly pushing their team to a playoff birth. Some of the leaders have missed too much time to have a shot (Pena, Quentin).

My clear choice would be Mauer. To do what he does offensively, all while playing the hardest defensive position, is amazing. In comparison to other catchers, he is heads and shoulder above them. If you replaced him with an average AL catcher, the Twins would suffer greatly. The same argument, IMO, should help Pedroia. And likewise, it should hurt all the first basemen (Morneau, Pena, Youkilis, etc). Sizemore had a fantastic year, but unfortunately he won't get too much love because of the sukitude of the Indians. Hamilton looked like the MVP in the first half, but his slugging and counting numbers have gone down drastically in the 2nd half.

My votes

Mauer

Pedroia

Sizemore

Morneau

Pena

Hamilton

Youkilis

Wow.. that's shocking to read coming from a Twins fan.. I agree Mauer has a good year & plays catcher but not sure how you could possibly view him as more valuable that Morneau. If a Twin wins the AL MVP it will be Morneau.. Mauer doesn't have a chance.. My bet is Pedroia unless the Twins make the playoffs & Morneau is hot the last week..

 

[the moops]

Wow.. that's shocking to read coming from a Twins fan.. I agree Mauer has a good year & plays catcher but not sure how you could possibly view him as more valuable that Morneau. If a Twin wins the AL MVP it will be Morneau.. Mauer doesn't have a chance.. My bet is Pedroia unless the Twins make the playoffs & Morneau is hot the last week..

I'm actually a Sox fan.IMO, Morneau is doing nothing special compared to other 1B, Youkilis and Pena. Whereas Mauer is so much better than any other catcher out there.

 

[Kuz]

Wow.. that's shocking to read coming from a Twins fan.. I agree Mauer has a good year & plays catcher but not sure how you could possibly view him as more valuable that Morneau. If a Twin wins the AL MVP it will be Morneau.. Mauer doesn't have a chance.. My bet is Pedroia unless the Twins make the playoffs & Morneau is hot the last week..

I'm actually a Sox fan.IMO, Morneau is doing nothing special compared to other 1B, Youkilis and Pena. Whereas Mauer is so much better than any other catcher out there.

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

 

[the moops]

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

Late and Close statsMauer OPS 1.020 Link

Morneau OPS .829 Link

 

[Kuz]

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

Late and Close statsMauer OPS 1.020 Link

Morneau OPS .829 Link

I get it.. you're a stats guy.. I'm just calling it as I see it.. & as IMO Mauer is not the teams MVP.. Morneau is.. but to each his own I guess..

 

[awesomeness]

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

Late and Close statsMauer OPS 1.020 Link

Morneau OPS .829 Link

I get it.. you're a stats guy.. I'm just calling it as I see it.. & as IMO Mauer is not the teams MVP.. Morneau is.. but to each his own I guess..

I'm getting the feeling that moops doesn't credit how clutch a guy is.

Morneau has been clutch all year, so has Pedroia though. I'd give the MVP to Morneau over Pedroia just because the whole Sox lineup is deadly as opposed to the Twins who have essentially 2 good hitters (though DeNard Span is making an argument).

 

[the moops]

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

Late and Close statsMauer OPS 1.020 Link

Morneau OPS .829 Link

I get it.. you're a stats guy.. I'm just calling it as I see it.. & as IMO Mauer is not the teams MVP.. Morneau is.. but to each his own I guess..

I'm getting the feeling that moops doesn't credit how clutch a guy is.

Morneau has been clutch all year, so has Pedroia though. I'd give the MVP to Morneau over Pedroia just because the whole Sox lineup is deadly as opposed to the Twins who have essentially 2 good hitters (though DeNard Span is making an argument).

Wait, so Morneau is clutch because you watch games and say so?An .829 OPS is nothing to sneeze at, but when compared to Mauer's 1.020, I don't know how you can ignore it. One guy clearly outperfroms his normal output in clutch situations, one does not.

PS Pedroia has a .954 OPS late and close. So he indeed is "clutch".

 

[Kuz]

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

Late and Close statsMauer OPS 1.020 Link

Morneau OPS .829 Link

I get it.. you're a stats guy.. I'm just calling it as I see it.. & as IMO Mauer is not the teams MVP.. Morneau is.. but to each his own I guess..

I'm getting the feeling that moops doesn't credit how clutch a guy is.

Morneau has been clutch all year, so has Pedroia though. I'd give the MVP to Morneau over Pedroia just because the whole Sox lineup is deadly as opposed to the Twins who have essentially 2 good hitters (though DeNard Span is making an argument).

Wait, so Morneau is clutch because you watch games and say so?An .829 OPS is nothing to sneeze at, but when compared to Mauer's 1.020, I don't know how you can ignore it. One guy clearly outperfroms his normal output in clutch situations, one does not.

PS Pedroia has a .954 OPS late and close. So he indeed is "clutch".

& one guy has 128 RBI's & one has 79... not sure how you can ignore that..

 

[the moops]

& one guy has 128 RBI's & one has 79... not sure how you can ignore that..

Flip flop Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau in the batting order.Who has more RBI then?

 

[Kuz]

& one guy has 128 RBI's & one has 79... not sure how you can ignore that..

Flip flop Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau in the batting order.Who has more RBI then?

seriously.. Morneau & it wouldn't be close. wow.. you're not making much sense now. I would have to look it up but I would be willing to bet Mauer has one of the worst RBI's for a #3 hitter. Don't get me wrong he's a great player but he's more of a # 2 guy.. Doesn't drive in enough runs to bad third but the Twins don't have a choice..

 

[the moops]

& one guy has 128 RBI's & one has 79... not sure how you can ignore that..

Flip flop Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau in the batting order.Who has more RBI then?

seriously.. Morneau & it wouldn't be close. wow.. you're not making much sense now. I would have to look it up but I would be willing to bet Mauer has one of the worst RBI's for a #3 hitter. Don't get me wrong he's a great player but he's more of a # 2 guy.. Doesn't drive in enough runs to bad third but the Twins don't have a choice..

Runners is Scoring Position this year.Mauer has batter 366Morneau has batted 362.The difference?Morneau has 50 more plate appearances with RISP.

 

[Kuz]

& one guy has 128 RBI's & one has 79... not sure how you can ignore that..

Flip flop Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau in the batting order.Who has more RBI then?

seriously.. Morneau & it wouldn't be close. wow.. you're not making much sense now. I would have to look it up but I would be willing to bet Mauer has one of the worst RBI's for a #3 hitter. Don't get me wrong he's a great player but he's more of a # 2 guy.. Doesn't drive in enough runs to bad third but the Twins don't have a choice..

Runners is Scoring Position this year.Mauer has batter 366Morneau has batted 362.The difference?Morneau has 50 more plate appearances with RISP.

What about Morneau's 73 extra base hits to Mauers 42... I get it you like Mauer better than me.. I think we can both agree to disagree a little as I'm with you that Mauer has had a good year. I'm just in Morneau's camp a bit more than you.. but I will lose this argument if we keep throwing stats out there. I don't think I can keep up with ya...haha..

 

[Spartans Rule]

I would have said Pedroria....but all those fancy stats seem to disagree.

Not necessarily. He plays second base so he doesn't need to stack up all that well in raw stats. Being second in VORP, behind a guy who probably won't get much consideration because he plays for a bad team, makes Pedroia a pretty strong contender to me.

 

[blackjack23]

Mauer

 

[blackjack23]

My pick wouldve been Quentin if he didnt break his wrist like an idiot. Nothing valuable about that. My pick will be Youkilis.

 

[the moops]

What about Morneau's 73 extra base hits to Mauers 42... I get it you like Mauer better than me.. I think we can both agree to disagree a little as I'm with you that Mauer has had a good year. I'm just in Morneau's camp a bit more than you.. but I will lose this argument if we keep throwing stats out there. I don't think I can keep up with ya...haha..

No doubt that Mauer's lack of ABs is a negative. Him being a catcher hurts him in that respect.However, counting numbers (RBI) aren't necessarily the best thing to look at when Justin Morneau has Joe Mauer hitting in front of him, and Joe Mauer has Gomez/Casilla/Harris in front of him. In that case, looking at their respective batting averages is a nice stat. And you are right, Morneau slugged much better with RISP than Mauer. Good discussion.

 

[Spartans Rule]

WPAMauer 4.72

This stat impresses me. Certainly bodes well for him in the discussions about clutch play.

 

[Kuz]

What about Morneau's 73 extra base hits to Mauers 42... I get it you like Mauer better than me.. I think we can both agree to disagree a little as I'm with you that Mauer has had a good year. I'm just in Morneau's camp a bit more than you.. but I will lose this argument if we keep throwing stats out there. I don't think I can keep up with ya...haha..

No doubt that Mauer's lack of ABs is a negative. Him being a catcher hurts him in that respect.However, counting numbers (RBI) aren't necessarily the best thing to look at when Justin Morneau has Joe Mauer hitting in front of him, and Joe Mauer has Gomez/Casilla/Harris in front of him. In that case, looking at their respective batting averages is a nice stat. And you are right, Morneau slugged much better with RISP than Mauer. Good discussion.

For my safe, I hope one of them gets it. That most likely means we made the playoffs..

 

[ahmngrn30]

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

Late and Close statsMauer OPS 1.020 Link

Morneau OPS .829 Link

I get it.. you're a stats guy.. I'm just calling it as I see it.. & as IMO Mauer is not the teams MVP.. Morneau is.. but to each his own I guess..

I'm getting the feeling that moops doesn't credit how clutch a guy is.

Morneau has been clutch all year, so has Pedroia though. I'd give the MVP to Morneau over Pedroia just because the whole Sox lineup is deadly as opposed to the Twins who have essentially 2 good hitters (though DeNard Span is making an argument).

Wait, so Morneau is clutch because you watch games and say so?An .829 OPS is nothing to sneeze at, but when compared to Mauer's 1.020, I don't know how you can ignore it. One guy clearly outperfroms his normal output in clutch situations, one does not.

PS Pedroia has a .954 OPS late and close. So he indeed is "clutch".

& one guy has 128 RBI's & one has 79... not sure how you can ignore that..

lol rbis? really? do they even keep that stat anymore. there's no way you're not 40+ right?

 

[Eephus]

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

Late and Close statsMauer OPS 1.020 Link

Morneau OPS .829 Link

I get it.. you're a stats guy.. I'm just calling it as I see it.. & as IMO Mauer is not the teams MVP.. Morneau is.. but to each his own I guess..

I'm getting the feeling that moops doesn't credit how clutch a guy is.

Morneau has been clutch all year, so has Pedroia though. I'd give the MVP to Morneau over Pedroia just because the whole Sox lineup is deadly as opposed to the Twins who have essentially 2 good hitters (though DeNard Span is making an argument).

Wait, so Morneau is clutch because you watch games and say so?An .829 OPS is nothing to sneeze at, but when compared to Mauer's 1.020, I don't know how you can ignore it. One guy clearly outperfroms his normal output in clutch situations, one does not.

PS Pedroia has a .954 OPS late and close. So he indeed is "clutch".

& one guy has 128 RBI's & one has 79... not sure how you can ignore that..

lol rbis? really? do they even keep that stat anymore. there's no way you're not 40+ right?

MVP voters care about RBI as much as this forum cares whether it's singular or plural

 

[MAC_32]

I'd vote for Sizemore, but on that team he doesn't have a chance.

 

[Nigel Incubator-Jones]

With all of the possibilities, this could be the year that someone like Francisco Rodriguez would win the MVP.

 

[awesomeness]

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

Late and Close statsMauer OPS 1.020 Link

Morneau OPS .829 Link

I get it.. you're a stats guy.. I'm just calling it as I see it.. & as IMO Mauer is not the teams MVP.. Morneau is.. but to each his own I guess..

I'm getting the feeling that moops doesn't credit how clutch a guy is.

Morneau has been clutch all year, so has Pedroia though. I'd give the MVP to Morneau over Pedroia just because the whole Sox lineup is deadly as opposed to the Twins who have essentially 2 good hitters (though DeNard Span is making an argument).

Wait, so Morneau is clutch because you watch games and say so?An .829 OPS is nothing to sneeze at, but when compared to Mauer's 1.020, I don't know how you can ignore it. One guy clearly outperfroms his normal output in clutch situations, one does not.

PS Pedroia has a .954 OPS late and close. So he indeed is "clutch".

What some of you stat geeks dont understand, is that it's very difficult to measure clutchness in a statistic. It's something you have to watch and get a feel for by actually watching games.PS i already said that Pedroia was clutch.

 

[the moops]

With all of the possibilities, this could be the year that someone like Francisco Rodriguez would win the MVP.

That would be a complete travesty.

 

[the moops]

What some of you stat geeks dont understand, is that it's very difficult to measure clutchness in a statistic. It's something you have to watch and get a feel for by actually watching games.PS i already said that Pedroia was clutch.

We do have stats that indeed measure clutch. Unless you have some bizarre definition of clutch.It can be measured by how players do with RISP, RISP w/2 outs, Late and Close, Extra Innings, Up 3 runs, Down 2 runs, Tie ball game.Whatever you want to look at, it is there. It is far more reliable than your feel.As fans, we are too often swayed by a big hit or bad double play or a key strikeout. Those big moments (and they are indeed big) stay with us. Many times it clouds our judgment.

 

[Nigel Incubator-Jones]

With all of the possibilities, this could be the year that someone like Francisco Rodriguez would win the MVP.

That would be a complete travesty.

A pitcher hasn't won the MVP since '92, but you never know what will happen.Personally I think Morneau should win.

 

[Spartans Rule]

What some of you stat geeks dont understand, is that it's very difficult to measure clutchness in a statistic. It's something you have to watch and get a feel for by actually watching games.PS i already said that Pedroia was clutch.

If I based clutch ability on my watching of games, I'd have to consider Craig Monroe the most clutch player in the history of baseball. When I tune in, he has an incredible knack for getting the big hit or making a key catch in the outfield.But if I look at statistics, like late and close numbers, they'd have me believe that Craig Monroe is the same lousy player at crunch time that he is in every other situation.Hmmm... what to trust... years of data, or my own flawed, selective memory? Tough call.

 

[Eephus]

With all of the possibilities, this could be the year that someone like Francisco Rodriguez would win the MVP.

That would be a complete travesty.

Eckersley, Willie Hernandez and Rollie Fingers have won the MVP as relievers. Thigpen finshed 4th in his record SV year. Gagne finished 6th in 2003 but there was no way he'd beat Bonds.If the voters are divided, K-rod could get enough top three votes to end up winning.

 

[Alias]

WPAMauer 4.72

This stat impresses me. Certainly bodes well for him in the discussions about clutch play.

If ever there was a "clutch" stat this is it.My vote is for Pedroia.

 

[awesomeness]

What some of you stat geeks dont understand, is that it's very difficult to measure clutchness in a statistic. It's something you have to watch and get a feel for by actually watching games.PS i already said that Pedroia was clutch.

If I based clutch ability on my watching of games, I'd have to consider Craig Monroe the most clutch player in the history of baseball. When I tune in, he has an incredible knack for getting the big hit or making a key catch in the outfield.But if I look at statistics, like late and close numbers, they'd have me believe that Craig Monroe is the same lousy player at crunch time that he is in every other situation.Hmmm... what to trust... years of data, or my own flawed, selective memory? Tough call.

 

[guru_007]

what the hell happened to Hamilton? Thought he was on pace for about 170 rbi's.

My vote would be for Morneau. I think Mauer's a good pick too, but it seems to me that Morneau is coming up with huge hit after huge hit.

Also, Morneau hits behind Mauer, so he has to get pitches to hit. Morneau is protected by Kubel.

Youk is having a fantastic season too, but the Sox lineup has a ton of quality hitters in it. It's pretty amazing to me that the Twins are still hanging around when you look at that team's offense and pitching, seems pedestrian at best.

 

[the moops]

It's pretty amazing to me that the Twins are still hanging around when you look at that team's offense and pitching, seems pedestrian at best.

Amazingly, they are 3rd in the league with scoring 5.16 runs per game.They are 7th in the league in surrendering 4.61 runs per game.That's a decent run differential (.5 runs), same as the Angels and White Sox. But behind the Rays (.65) and the Red Sox (1.01).

 

[Kuz]

okay.. you're a Sox fan.. understood now.. Morneau has had quite a bit more clutch hits than Mauer. I will give you Mauer as the best defensive catcher in the game but as a hitter this year, Morneau has been quite a bit more valuable than Mauer..

Late and Close statsMauer OPS 1.020 Link

Morneau OPS .829 Link

I get it.. you're a stats guy.. I'm just calling it as I see it.. & as IMO Mauer is not the teams MVP.. Morneau is.. but to each his own I guess..

I'm getting the feeling that moops doesn't credit how clutch a guy is.

Morneau has been clutch all year, so has Pedroia though. I'd give the MVP to Morneau over Pedroia just because the whole Sox lineup is deadly as opposed to the Twins who have essentially 2 good hitters (though DeNard Span is making an argument).

Wait, so Morneau is clutch because you watch games and say so?An .829 OPS is nothing to sneeze at, but when compared to Mauer's 1.020, I don't know how you can ignore it. One guy clearly outperfroms his normal output in clutch situations, one does not.

PS Pedroia has a .954 OPS late and close. So he indeed is "clutch".

& one guy has 128 RBI's & one has 79... not sure how you can ignore that..

lol rbis? really? do they even keep that stat anymore. there's no way you're not 40+ right?

haha.. good burn. P.S. I'm only 39.. not there quite yet but good one nonetheless...

 

[MAC_32]

what the hell happened to Hamilton? Thought he was on pace for about 170 rbi's.

Kinsler's out for the year, Young has been hurt/ineffective, the guys that have been playing in place of them aren't getting on with the same frequency, Bradley's been in and out of the lineup so he may not be seeing as many pitches as he was before, and perhaps fatigue has caught up to him - he's getting a ton of singles but just 1 HR this month.Some combo of all that.

 

[the moops]

September batting. BA, OBP, SLG

Mauer .378, .426, .500

Morneau .273, .320, .455

Youkilis .286, .415, .587

Pedroia .318, .388, .523

 

[wilked]

It's a close race, no doubt. A Twinkie may end up getting it if they complete their feel-good comeback... Frankly any of the 4 above are worthy. I hope Pedey or Mauer get it...Pedey cuz he plays the game right, is a leader in the clubhouse, and has stellar defense, or Mauer cuz he has performed at this level a few years now (04/06 come to mind).

 

[the moops]

It's a close race, no doubt. A Twinkie may end up getting it if they complete their feel-good comeback... Frankly any of the 4 above are worthy. I hope Pedey or Mauer get it...Pedey cuz he plays the game right, is a leader in the clubhouse, and has stellar defense, or Mauer cuz he has performed at this level a few years now (04/06 come to mind).

If they are going to give it to a 1B, Youkilis and perhaps even Pena, are more deserving than Morneau.Youkilis betters Morneau in BA, OBP, SLG, and HR (Morneau has more RBI, Runs and Hits). He also plays a much better 1B defense, and can slide over to 3B and play at worst average defense over there.But, I stilll wouldn't be surprised if Morneau won. He didn't deserve it in 2006 either (Ortiz should have won), and he has worse stats this year. And as many people here seem to think, he is clutch (even though he is the least clutch of what should be the top 4 candidates), and I am sure many writers feel the same way.

 

[Workhorse]

Here's why I'd give it to Pedroia:

After the Sox traded away Manny at the break, it was critical for the Sox to come out strong and show they could win without him. The Sox went 18-9 in August and really pulled away from the pack in the Wild Card race, and locked up the playoffs.

Pedroia carried the Sox in August: .374/.426/.635. Nobody got the kid out for a month, and he pretty much single handedly filled the Manny gap.

Now THAT'S an MVP.

 

[Hov34]

Mauer is producing at this level playing Catcher - that really should wrap it up, but voters love the RBI too much.

 

[the moops]

In the last 2 weeks of the season, Justin Morneau put up the following line.

.189, .259, .249. For an amazing OPS of .504. That is not clutch.

Joe Mauer over the same time frame.

.412, .467, .627.

 

[TitusIII]

My pick wouldve been Quentin if he didnt break his wrist like an idiot. Nothing valuable about that. My pick will be Youkilis.

I think idiot is quite a stretch, he does the same thing many/most ballplayers do after a K...just bad luck...it's not like he punched his bat/wall...he slapped his hand on the bat, and it broke. Doesn't say much for the future of his wrist, but his swing is as violent as I've ever seen, so it doesn't surprise me.He carried that team for 5 months, but the wrist injury will cost him the award he probably should have won...