First-half awards: Plenty of new faces earn honors
Article By smcneal.tsn on 10th July, 2010
With the All-Star break approaching, baseball's races for individual glory are as tight as the pennant races. About all that is certain is that 2009's big winners -- Albert Pujols, Joe Mauer, Tim Lincecum and Zack Greinke -- will need stronger showings in the second half to have a chance of repeating.
First-half award winners:
Adrian Gonzalez can do more than hit; he can also flash the leather at first. NL MVP Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, Padres. Though his numbers aren't the most impressive, Gonzalez rates an edge over a contingent that includes Pujols, David Wright and Joey Votto because of:
1. The success of his team. The NL West-leading Padres have been the majors' most surprising team because of their pitching, but their offense has done enough. Gonzalez has done plenty: He is hitting .301/.396/.538 with 18 homers and 56 RBIs and has an MLB-best .528 OBP with runners in scoring position.
2. He shoulders a much larger offensive burden than anyone in the league. No other Padre has hit more than eight homers.
3. His defense. Gonzalez is in line to win his third consecutive Gold Glove, a valuable trait on a team that relies so much on holding down the opposition.
NL Cy Young Ubaldo Jimenez, SP, Rockies. He is 15-1 with a 2.20 ERA and .198 batting average allowed, and he has wowed the league since no-hitting the Braves in April. "He pitches 96-98 (mph) and can throw it 100 when he wants to," Diamondbacks third basemen Mark Reynolds says. "He has that the whole time he's in there."
Jimenez, however, doesn't have the stranglehold on this award that he did three weeks ago, thanks to the Marlins' Josh Johnson and the Cardinals' Adam Wainwright. Johnson is working on an 11-start run during which he has allowed a total of seven runs and dropped his ERA to a major league-best 1.70. Wainwright, a 13-game winner, has a 2.11 ERA.
AL MVP Miguel Cabrera, 1B, Tigers. The way he fin...
Read Complete Article at Latest Sporting News Articles for MLB
First-half award winners:
Adrian Gonzalez can do more than hit; he can also flash the leather at first. NL MVP Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, Padres. Though his numbers aren't the most impressive, Gonzalez rates an edge over a contingent that includes Pujols, David Wright and Joey Votto because of:
1. The success of his team. The NL West-leading Padres have been the majors' most surprising team because of their pitching, but their offense has done enough. Gonzalez has done plenty: He is hitting .301/.396/.538 with 18 homers and 56 RBIs and has an MLB-best .528 OBP with runners in scoring position.
2. He shoulders a much larger offensive burden than anyone in the league. No other Padre has hit more than eight homers.
3. His defense. Gonzalez is in line to win his third consecutive Gold Glove, a valuable trait on a team that relies so much on holding down the opposition.
NL Cy Young Ubaldo Jimenez, SP, Rockies. He is 15-1 with a 2.20 ERA and .198 batting average allowed, and he has wowed the league since no-hitting the Braves in April. "He pitches 96-98 (mph) and can throw it 100 when he wants to," Diamondbacks third basemen Mark Reynolds says. "He has that the whole time he's in there."
Jimenez, however, doesn't have the stranglehold on this award that he did three weeks ago, thanks to the Marlins' Josh Johnson and the Cardinals' Adam Wainwright. Johnson is working on an 11-start run during which he has allowed a total of seven runs and dropped his ERA to a major league-best 1.70. Wainwright, a 13-game winner, has a 2.11 ERA.
AL MVP Miguel Cabrera, 1B, Tigers. The way he fin...
Read Complete Article at Latest Sporting News Articles for MLB
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