OK, here we go with the MLB mid-season awards. I'll put up who I gave the award to in my first quarter awards and see how they've changed.
Here is who I had for my first quarter awards:
AL MVP- Manny Ramirez, Red Sox
AL Cy Young- Cliff Lee, Indians
AL Manager of the Year- Ron Gardenhire, Twins
NL MVP- Chase Utley, Phillies
NL Cy Young- Brandon Webb, Diamondbacks
NL Manager of the Year- Fredi Gonzalez, Marlins
Now for the midseason awards:
AL MVP- Josh Hamilton, Rangers. He leads the AL in HR and RBI and has made the Rangers a team that nobody wants to play.
AL Cy Young- Cliff Lee, Indians. Lee is still the pitcher that I have winning the Cy-but Francisco Rodriguez and Mariano Rivera have been lights out this season. This will get interesting.
AL Manager of the Year- Joe Maddon, Rays. Go ahead and engrave his name on the trophy-he has turned the Rays from a laughing stock into a team with the best record in baseball. Impressive!
AL Rookie of the Year- Evan Longoria, Rays. I didn't name ROY's in my quarterly awards because I didn't feel it was enough time to see the rookies. This kid is the real deal and he is a major reason the Rays have turned things around.
NL MVP- Chase Utley, Phillies. I almost put Dan Uggla here, but the Phillies have not gotten production from Jimmy Rollins, and Ryan Howard is batting .211-yet the Phils are still in 1st place. Uggla has matched Utley in HR's and is clearly the man keeping the Marlins in the race. Imagine-2 second baseman in the same division with the last name starting with U leading the majors in home runs.
NL Cy Young- Edinson Volquez, Reds. Webb has struggled lately for the D-Backs, and this kid has really impressed me. Tim Lincecum is right in this mix as well. Imagine this-a trade before the season sends the AL MVP to Texas and the NL Cy Young winner to Cincinnati. Good deal for both teams.
NL Manager of the Year- Fredi Gonzalez, Marlins. Tony LaRussa deserves props as well as Lou Piniella, but nobody has done more with less and worked through injuries as much as Gonzalez. If the Fish stay in the race, he should win this award.
NL Rookie of the Year- Kosuke Fukudome, Cubs. I was giving this award to a Cub-it's just a matter whether Fukudome or Geovany Soto was going to get it. These two rookies are very fun to watch and they have helped the Cubs to the top of the NL Central.
With over half the season still to be played alot can change,but barring key injuries,the Rays should compete for a post season spot. That being the case I agree that Joe Maddon is a solid pick for A.L. Manager of the year.
Never mind...I was trying to post how much better than Lincecum's numbers were than Webb, and then I read the rest of your post. In looking at the numbers, Volquez is indeed very impressive. He and Lincecum are both pretty scary.
Sorry but ton larussa is manager of the year. All of are pitchers are on the dl. Alburtr pujols was on the dl. Yet were just 2 games back and no one nos y. beacuse we have heart and we dont stop playing. Thanks tony another great year so far for u
No way sodacan-the Marlins have had 3 or 4 pitchers from their rotation on the DL all year. Plus, you guys have known talents like Ankiel, Glaus, and the stud known as Pujols-who wasn't gone for that long. The Marlins are a half game back of the Phillies and 3 games ahead of the favored Mets ($138 million payroll). Nobody expected this out of the Marlins-with their $23 million payroll. Their only "star" player before the season started was Hanley Ramirez-who still wasn't that well known. I'm not saying Larussa hasn't done a good job-he just hasn't done what Fredi Gonzalez has done this year.
