MLB: Surprises spice first half
Whether its the emergence of the Nationals and the Orioles or the domination of Mike Trout and R.A. Dickey, baseball’s first few months have been anything but routine
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RAISE YOUR HAND if you predicted back on April Fools Day ...
• That, as the all-star break approaches, the Washington Nationals would have the best record in the National League by a healthy margin ...
• That the best pitcher in baseball would be a 37-year-old knuckleballer who entered the season with 41 career wins ...
• That, as the all-star break approaches, the Washington Nationals would have the best record in the National League by a healthy margin ...
• That the best pitcher in baseball would be a 37-year-old knuckleballer who entered the season with 41 career wins ...
Washington Nationals rookie Bryce Harper has lived up to the hype as a former No. 1 draft pick.
- Nick Wass /AP
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• That the Pittsburgh Pirates would own a nine-game lead in the race for best team in Pennsylvania ...
• Or that one of the five no-hitters thrown in the first half would be a perfect game by a Chicago White Sox pitcher who has a 6.94 ERA in his other 11 starts.
We won’t even try to guess what will happen in the second half of this season. Instead, let’s take a look at where baseball’s major awards stand at the break (all stats are through Thursday):
AL MVP
Mike Trout, Angels. This pick passes both the sabermetric test (he has the highest wins above replacement in the AL, per fangraphs.com) and the old-school eye test (the Angels’ fortunes turned almost immediately after they called him up in April). He’s 20 and was in the minors until late April, but nobody in the league affects games in more ways.
NL MVP
Joey Votto, Reds. There’s little question Votto (.349 batting average with a .468 on-base percentage and a .623 slugging percentage) was the best hitter in the game in the first half. The only room for debate is how much he should be docked for his home stadium, his position or the fact that his team has been unable to pull away in a weak division. The answer here: Not enough to lose the hardware.
AL Cy Young
Justin Verlander, Tigers. On the surface, his raw numbers (9-5, 2.58 ERA) appear far less gaudy than last year’s (24-5, 2.40), but look closer and all his stats are nearly identical. Plus, as always, he leads the league in innings pitched, which in my mind breaks all ties.
NL Cy Young
R.A. Dickey, Mets. It’s easy to get wrapped up in the narrative of the eccentric knuckleballer/author/mountain climber. But this honor was earned with performance — including a 12-1 record (a .923 winning percentage that would rank third all-time) and 2.40 ERA, plus the league’s best walks and hits per inning and highest wins above replacement.
AL Rookie of the Year
Mike Trout, Angels. MVP and Rookie of the Year in the same season? It wouldn’t be unprecedented — Fred Lynn did it in 1975 and Ichiro Suzuki in 2001. But they were 23 and 27 years old, respectively, while Trout is 20. Are you beginning to understand how historic a season this young man is putting up?
NL Rookie of the Year
Bryce Harper, Nationals. There’s a strong case to be made for Arizona left-hander Wade Miley (9-5, 3.04 ERA), but the longer Harper (.283/.355/.475) is around, the more it becomes clear he stands alone among NL rookies in terms of impact. We swore off predictions, but here’s one: By the end of the season, this will be Harper in a rout.
AL Manager of the Year
Buck Showalter, Orioles. The AL East remains the toughest division in baseball, and logic tells us Baltimore has no business being anywhere near its summit. But here they are, just past the midpoint of the season, stalking the Yankees and angling for both their first playoff appearance and winning season since 1997.
NL Manager of the Year
Davey Johnson, Nationals. Whether he’s taking on rival managers (his pine tar dust-up with Tampa Bay’s Joe Maddon), figuring out ways to plug injury-related holes, or easing Bryce Harper into the top half of the lineup, Johnson has pushed all the right buttons.
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