My MLB Awards Picks Part 2

We looked at Part 1 of the MLB Awards yesterday. Here are the top players in baseball...as far as I'm concerned at least.


American League MVP

1. Joe Mauer - Not even a competition. He led the league in all the slashes (BA/OBP/SLG)--as a catcher. He also led his team to the playoffs which ended any type of argument one could have against him.
   
2. Derek Jeter - He won't win again this year, but this time, it's justified. He had a fabulous bounce-back season both on offense and defense as he went back to being the leadoff hitter on the best offense on the best team in baseball.
   
3. Zack Grienke - I know his team didn't do well and I know that he's a pitcher, but where would his team have been without his effort? Amazing season.
   
4. Kevin Youkilis - I could have flip-flopped him and Teixeira but I felt like the Red Sox player doesn't get his due, especially since he filled in at 3B and even took the bullet out in LF when they needed him. That's the definition of an MVP.
   
5. Mark Teixeira - Not a bad first season in the Bronx. The one thing that hurts him? He didn't take off until A-Rod showed up (well that, and the stadium he plays his home games in). But the guy was in the top-10 of most offensive categories and led the league in HR and RBIs and played a spectacular first despite what any UZR numbers will tell you.
   
6. Ben Zobrist - Surprised to see him on here especially above teammate Evan Longoria? Well most would be. But the guy led the entire majors in Wins Over Replacement (WAR) ahead of Mauer, Albert Pujols or any other hitter. And like I said with Youkilis, his value was playing wherever the team needed him--and playing that position well.
   
7. Evan Longoria - Another fabulous season for a guy who will perennially be on this list. He not only does it with his bat--he's great on defense as well. And he's supposedly the face of MLB'10 (the video game) so he's steadily growing in popularity as well
   
8. Felix Hernandez - Like Grienke, you have to ask where his team would be without him pitching for them. He may have been better than Grienke when you consider who he beat and he single-handedly kept his team in the playoff race for most of the season.
   
9. Kendry Morales - This team lost Teixeira and survived because of what Morales did at first. You could have gone with Chone Figgins or Bobby Abreu here and had an argument, but Morales was a big reason they had any offense.
   
10. Alex Rodriguez - Just look at the Yankees record from when he arrived back on the team and tell me that's not the definition of an MVP. It at least deserves some votes.

American League Least Valuable Player

1. Miguel Cabrera - This guy would have been a top-7 MVP candidate and then he decided to go out and drink with the opposing team before the biggest part of his team's season. They didn't make the playoffs and I hold him responsible. If any writers voted for him because they didn't wait until the end of the season, they should be ashamed of themselves.
   

National League MVP

1. Albert Pujols - Not many are even close to his stratosphere. The guy is a beast. He doesn't get his due on defense either where he should be a perennial Gold Glover. I have a feeling one day he will challenge for a Triple Crown.
2. Chase Utley - I know I said not many are close to Pujols, but Utley is realllllly close. When you factor in his defensive prowess, he actually had a better season than Derek Jeter. And although it doesn't count with the MVP voting, his World Series performance just proved that he's for real.
3. Hanley Ramirez - The guy is a really good hitter and not as bad defensively as many think. I wonder if Florida will look to trade him soon and what type of package Ramirez will bring back considering he's developing into one of the Majors top players
4. Pablo Sandoval - Another "who?" goes up from most people here but he was the top hitter on San Francisco. Well, he was their only hitter. They would have never been in the hunt for a playoff spot without Sandoval there.
   
5. Prince Fielder - He's the second best hitter in the league and makes a really nice tandem with Ryan Braun that compares to any 3-4 punch in the baseball.
6. Troy Tulowitzki - It was Jim Tracy's arrival, but it was also Tulo's resurgence that caused the Rockies turnaround. And he was one of the best players in the league from the shortstop position on a team that lost Matt Holliday.
7. Adrian Gonzalez - The only hitter on San Diego and plays a really good defense as well. He might not be there to start the next season but whoever picks him up (Boston?) will be getting a really, really good player.
8. Ryan Zimmerman - Does it with the bat and the glove and has developed into the franchise player Washington thought they had. Now if they can only get him some other players...
9. Tim Lincecum - May not be the Cy Young and did have Matt Cain as well...but does his team even compete for a playoff position without him? Amazing what he's done at such a young age.
10. Matt Kemp - I could have gone with either Cardinal pitcher here or Ryan Braun, but I don't know how we could have no Dodger on the list especially one as valuable as Kemp was to the Dodger success (a WAR of 5.0)--no offense to Andre Ethier 

National League Least Valuable Player

1. Alfonso Soriano/Milton Bradley - The Cubs were supposed to compete thanks to the money they spent on those two and they were beyond awful. And they're untradeable. That A-Rod-Soriano trade looks better by the day.