[MVB]

I know there's already a poll on who we'd like to see win the AL MVP award, but I wanted to start a new thread, pointing out some stat comparisons.

Actually, I'm only going to look at the hitters who are in the race. I know Santana is now getting some attention, but I doubt he'll win the MVP ( he'll get the Cy Young).

Front-runners for the MVP Award:

Jermaine Dye, Chicago White Sox
Derek Jeter, New York Yankees
Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins
Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins
David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox

( I'm leaving out Travis Hafner since he's gonna miss an entire month of playing.)

Let's compare some POWER numbers:

Home Runs
Ortiz: 48
Dye: 41
Morneau: 33
Jeter: 13
Mauer: 11

RBI
Ortiz: 127
Morneau: 120
Dye: 112
Jeter: 92
Mauer: 78

Slugging Percentage:
Dye: .637
Ortiz: .628
Morneau: .583
Mauer: .505
Jeter: .492

Ok, so far we see that the big sluggers have been.... slugging. But that's not what the award is all about. Remembers, it's Most Valuable Player. Not- most valuable run-producer or most valuable slugger.

Some SWINGING numbers:

Walks:
Ortiz: 97
Mauer: 74
Jeter: 66
Dye: 52
Morneau: 47

Strike-Outs:
Mauer: 44
Morneau: 81
Jeter: 91
Ortiz: 105
Dye: 107

Ok, pretty simple so far... The sluggers usually are walked more ( though, as you can see Mauer and Jeter have had a lot of good at-bats) and whiff more.

Now, a few ON-BASE numbers:

On-Base Percentage:
Mauer: .433
Jeter: .423
Ortiz: .401
Dye: .388
Morneau: .379


Runs Scored:
Jeter: 104
Ortiz: 103
Dye:93
Morneau: 85
Mauer: 78

Doubles:
Jeter: 36
Morneau: 33
Mauer: 32
Dye: 26
Ortiz: 26

Stolen Bases:
Jeter: 30
Mauer: 8
Dye:7
Morneau:3
Ortiz: 1

These are some very revealing stats. Getting on base isn't all there is to it. Mauer leads all the candidates in OBP, yet he has scored the fewest runs. But, look at Jeter's production. Getting on, moving up, and eventually scoring. He's the fastest and the best base-runner among the bunch.

A few HITTING numbers:

Hits:
Jeter: 192
Morneau: 168
Mauer: 162
Dye: 158
Ortiz: 145

Batting Average:
Mauer: .348
Jeter: .346
Morneau: .324
Dye: .322
Ortiz: .285 ( pretty low)

BA at Home:
Jeter: .358
Morneau: .338
Mauer: .330
Dye: .320
Ortiz: .286

BA on the Road:
Mauer: .363
Jeter: .336
Dye: .324
Morneau: .310
Ortiz: .285

Now, for some SITUATIONAL HITTING stats:

Bases Empty ( rally needed) BA:
Jeter: .322
Morneau: .318
Mauer: .315
Dye: .297
Ortiz: .277

BA with RISP:
Jeter: .396
Mauer: .382
Dye: .353
Morneau: .333
Ortiz: .293

Bases Loaded BA:
Jeter: .455
Morneau: .412
Ortiz: .333
Mauer: .333
Dye: .000 ( 0-4)

BA Late in Close Games:
Jeter: .320
Ortiz: .313
Mauer: .311
Morneau: .307
Dye: .306

My own opinion on DEFENSE:

Defense:
Jeter: 2-time Gold Glove winner at SS
Dye: Gold Glove winning outfielder ( 6 years ago)
Mauer: pretty decent catcher
Morneau: average firstbaseman
Ortiz: designated hitter

And now, I present the top 5 AL Players of 2006:

5. Joe Mauer

Joe Mauer could be the first catcher to win the batting title in the history of baseball. Mauer has very patient at-bats, waits for the right pitch, and hits it well.

Why he doesn't win the MVP award: Even though he has a high batting average, Mauer isn't even in the top 10 "hit-collectors" in the American League. Mauer also lacks power, speed, and a run-producing bat. Even though he has the highest on-base-percentage of all the candidates, Joe Mauer has only scored 78 runs ( fewest among the candidates).

4. Justin Morneau

Justin Morneau became the first Minnesota Twins player in over a decade to hit over 30 homers. Morneau is also second in the league with 120 runs-batted-in.

Why he doesn't win the MVP award: Morneau is a bit too aggressive this year. He has the lowest OBP among the candidates, walks the least, and often chases pitches. ( He has seen 400 fewer pitches then Jeter and Ortiz.) But the biggest fact is that he isn't as important to his team, as other are to their's. He is only a small PART of the Twins' success this year.... sharing the spotlight with Santana, Nathan, Mauer, and Cuddyer.

3. David Ortiz

A few months ago, I would have told you- "David Ortiz is the MVP of the American League for sure!"

Ortiz leads the league in homers and RBIs. He has scored a ton of runs and hits the ball with amazing power every time he comes up. Ortiz works the pitchers he faces, and chooses the pitch he wants to hit. "Big Papi" has power in all directions, and really led his team during the first half of the season.

Why he doesn't win the MVP: While Derek Jeter and Jermaine Dye carried their teams through injuries and pitching troubles, Ortiz has kinda gone down with the ship, so to speak. As Boston's troubles started, Ortiz did not pick them up. Now, I know the collapse isn't entirely his fault, but he has done little to help. Instead, Ortiz complains about his teammates and the league. Not what the league's most valuable player does.

( Some might argue that he isn't even the MVP of his team! [ Schilling, Papelbon, Manny, and Varitek are the other noms] )

Besides this point, Ortiz doesn't hit very well. Of our candidates, he has the lowest Batting Average, fewest hits, worst speed, and gives his team no defensive help whatsoever.

And he bats a lowly .293 with runners in scoring position.

2. Jermaine Dye

If not for Dye, the White Sox aren't even in a wildcard race. Chicago's pitching has been so dismal, that Dye had to really carry this team on his back all year. Dye has 41 homers, 112 RBIs, 158 hits, and 93 runs scored. Woah!

Why he doesn't win the MVP: The only reason for Dye's not winning the MVP award will be the White Sox not making the playoffs. If they do, he will stand a good chance of winning. If he doesn't, then the shortstop from New York has it all wrapped up.

Jermaine Dye does have some noticeable flaws though. He rarely walks, and he has K'd more then any other of our candidates. He struggles sometimes late in games, and he has very little speed.

But I guess those are minor issues.

1. Derek Jeter

The guy who does it all. The most valuable PLAYER.

During the summer, the Yankees had innumerable injuries. Cano, Matsui, and Sheffield were on the DL. A-Rod couldn't hit to save his life. Giambi was on and off. The Yankees trotted out minor league lineups ( with guys like Terrence Long, Aaron Guiel, Miguel Cairo, Nick Green, Sal Fasano, Kelly Stinnet, and Kevin Thompson) But through it all, Jeter remained consistent. He was the Captain of the team, encouraging the rookies and supporting the struggling veterans. Jeter was always on base, making things happen. Whether he dropped down a bunt, walked and stole a couple bases, or homered into the opposite field upper-deck, Derek Jeter did it all. Jeter always worked the pitchers, always hit well with runners on ( especially with two outs and late in the game) and ran the bases wisely( 30+ SBs).

Jeter did it all. That's why he should win the American League MVP award.


Thoughts?

[Gotham Dark Knight]

Now MVB, that's a long way to go to toot the horn for Jeter...sure he is a superstar...but he has one heck of a support cast (And that includes A-Rod and is off year)...

By the way....285 when you are hitting +40 homers is not "too low"...its still a decent average...

I still think Jeter will be hard press to take out Oritz...Mauer will have his share on awards down the line

[EmpireWF]

I still doubt Ortiz has any legit shot at winning the MVP this year. His little "episode" earlier in the week won't help his chances either.

Boston's complete collapse is the big reason in my book why Ortiz doesn't deserve the MVP.

[ThePundit]

Where would the Twins be without Morneau? He may be the surprise winner.

[MVB]

Ortiz isn't gonna win the award... If the MVP award was given to good players who played with terrible teams, then Travis Hafner would win it. The Red Sox are 12 games out in the East, Ortiz's chances of winning the MVP are growing slimmer and slimmer. I think it'll come down between Jeter and Dye.

Originally Posted by Gotham

By the way....285 when you are hitting +40 homers is not "too low"...its still a decent average...

The lowest batting average ever held by an MVP winner was .279 ( Marris), I think. Ortiz's average is only 14 points higher.

Originally Posted by Pundit

Where would the Twins be without Morneau? He may be the surprise winner.

I think his teammates, Santana and Mauer will take away some of his votes...

[MJHMarc]

To tell you all the truth, I didn't expect our Yankees' Moderater to support David Ortiz of the Red Sox.

I have been producing the final statistics rating of the MLB players for my friend's trading card game he produces every year.

In the game, Mauer is rated a 90 while Morneau is a 94. Should we take that into consideration even though the game is based on batting statistics?

[MVB]

Here is part of an article by Bob Ryan, writer for the Boston Globe ( also appears on Sports Center, Around the Horn, 4 Quarters, etc...)

Start with the premise that it's a nebulous concept to begin with. How much stock are we really supposed to put in the word ``valuable"? Is ``valuable" actually a synonym for ``irreplaceable," and if that's the case, why should a player be penalized if his team has an adequate substitute for him, thus rendering him less ``irreplaceable"? I must tell you I have a real problem when people harp on this word ``valuable," as opposed to, for example, ``outstanding." I'd like to introduce another word: worthy. Most Worthy Player. How does that sound?

The rules also instruct... voters to select a ``winning ballplayer," while reminding them that ``combined offensive and defensive ability is not always indicated by a system of records."

then later....

So here's the deal: Derek Jeter is the MVP. The numbers are all in order, right down to categories such as hitting with runners in scoring position and late-inning pressure averages. Batting second most of the time, he will knock in over a hundred, and he has already scored 100 runs for the 10th time in 11 full seasons. There is great debate about just how good a fielder he is among the Baseball Prospectus crowd, but you'd take him.

But he deserves the award for reasons that transcend the numbers.
Remember what you read a few minutes ago? The ``winning ballplayer"? The one whose ``combined offensive and defensive ability is not always indicated by a system of records"? Jeter is the guy they were thinking about. In a season of great Yankees turmoil, he was the absolute rock, the absolute leader, the absolute irreplaceable man. He was, in short, the most worthy player in the American League.

It would be a mockery to anoint anyone else. I love ya, Papi, but Derek Jeter is the American League MVP.

[Gotham Dark Knight]

Originally Posted by MVB

Here is part of an article by Bob Ryan, writer for the Boston Globe ( also appears on Sports Center, Around the Horn, 4 Quarters, etc...)

then later....

Should we bow to the great Bob Ryan?...I think he is just hoping on the bandwagon...I'd respect him more if he stood by his home town boy...

[legend]

When Ortiz opened his mouth before his "heart-problems" after the Yankee series and trashed the team's official scorer, he ruffled some feathers in the sportswriting community. The official scorer is almost always a former writer. Then when he took his shots at Jeter and then claimed he was misquoted, he really threw himself under the bus. That and the Boston swoon looks to have doomed his chances. Prior to the Yankee series in late August, he was an easy winner of this award, but I guess that's why they hand it out AFTER the season.

[JackAigner]

It's hard for me to say it, but I'd vote for Jeter. He's really having a heck of a year.

[Trashed]

Originally Posted by JackAigner

It's hard for me to say it, but I'd vote for Jeter. He's really having a heck of a year.

I too am a Yankee hater who would vote for Derek Jeter if my vote counted. He did it all for the Yankees including pretty much managing them on the field cuz Joe was asleep per usuale.

[MJHMarc]

I guess Derek Jeter will win the MVP trophy this year instead of the World Series trophy!

Which is worth more to a player?