As we always do upon completing our divisional previews here at the Giants Blog, we like to take our guesses as to who wins the league's major awards, including MVP, Cy Young, Batting Champion, HR Champ, Comeback player of the year and Manager of the Year. Then taking our best guess as of late March as to how things will shake out in the playoffs come October.
MVP: Miguel Cabrera, 1B, Detroit Tigers: With the ultimate protector behind him know in Prince Fielder, he'll be seeing a lot more lefties late in ballgames, and much better pitches to hit than when he was being protected by Magglio Ordonez. Probably goes for .340/45/140/1.500 OPS. Runners Up: Albert Pujols, LAA; Josh Hamilton, Tex; Robinson Cano, NYY.
Cy Young: C.C. Sabathia, NY Yankees: The big lefty is in his third season in the Bronx, and they say the third is the charm. I foresee huge things not only for Sabathia, but the rest of the Yankees, as long as they keep their left-sided of their infield healthy. Sabathia could very well make it to 25 wins this year and always has the era around 3 or below and over a K-per-inning to verify his dominance. Runners Up: Jered Weaver, LAA; Justin Verlanded, Det; David Price, TB.
Home Run Champ: Jose Bautista, Toronto: The dude has been on an unbelievable streak since 2010 started, and I don't see it coming to an end any time too soon. AL pitchers just can't get the guy out as he's been compared to a right-handed version of Barry Bonds. With an improved Blue Jays Lineup, He may reach 55 this year, in a park that is equal to pitchers and hitters. If he played in a small yard like in Cinci, Houston or Texas, he'd probably hit 75. Runners Up: Prince Fielder, Det; Mark Teixiera, NYY; Evan Longoria, TB.
Batting Champion: Adrian Gonzalez, Boston: He plays in a hitters yard, in a good lineup and is one of the better selective power guys in the game. He's always around .330 and this year, his 3rd in the AL, should have him around .350. Runners Up: Migeul Cabrera, Det; Michael Young, Tex; Jacoby Ellsbury, Bos.
Comeback Player of the Year: Adam Dunn, Chicago: The Big lefty has hit some mammoth shots this spring, but again is hitting for a low batting average, but I have a hard time seeing him not improve upon his 11 HR and 44 RBI in 2011. He's never been a great average guy, but he should at least be around .240-.250, and will return to the 30 HR category, likely collecting 100 RBI's on the way. He's just to good (very selective) and strong (40 HR per-year in Cinci every year as starter) to have another down year without big production. Runners Up: Kendrys Morales, LAA, Chone Figgins, Sea.
Manager of the Year: Ned Yost, Kansas City: Yost has been a big part of the Royals big leap in the last two seasons, helping players like Alex Gordon and Eric Hosmer become instant stars. This year, in a weaker Central division, the Royals look to stand out even more, so much so that an injury here, or a bad break there for Detroit could have them as the default favorites in the Central. Most impressive, perhaps, is that he makes this team competitive with Bruce Chen as it's ace. Runners Up: Mike Scioscia, LAA, Jim Leyland, Det; Bobby Valentine, Bos.
MVP: Matt Kemp, OF, Dodgers: Probably a year to late, as Kemp for all intent and purposes, should have won the award last season. This year, he's talking about his goal being a 50-50 season, which has never been done in baseball before, and I wouldn't put it past him. Maybe not 50-50, but I think another 45-40 year with a good .330 average will again be expected and reached by the 27 year-old center fielder. Don't forget he plays center field at a gold-glove caliber. Runners Up: Hanley Ramirez, Mia; Justin Upton, AZ; Joey Votto, Cin.
Cy Young: Josh Johnson, Miami Marlins: If this guy stays healthy for his full 30 starts, it's hard to find a better arm than Johnson. He's been dominant this spring, showing now ill-effects from the injury, and is throwing in the high-90's with ease and no pain. All this, with an improved Marlins team, could lead to 20 win season and if your looking for a possible sub-2 era, this guy may have the best shot. Runners Up: Clayton Kershaw, LAD; Tim Lincecum, SF; Adam Wainwright, Stl.
Rookie of the Year: Bryce Harper, Was: This kid is going to be a monster when he arrives, and I look at the impact Posey had on the Giants upon his arrival, and see much of the same with Harper. He'll start in the minors, but Washington will want him sooner than later, and even in 400 at-bats, he's got 25-30 HR potential, with speed, good defense and a good average to boot. Runners Up: Yonder Alonso, SD; Drew Pomeranz, Col.
Home Run Champion: Jay Bruce, Cin; Bruce is coming into the year with some quiet hype behind him. He's got raw power and now has a couple of good years under his belt and could be ready to explode. I think 45 homers would be easily reachable in that yard for Bruce. Runners Up: Matt Kemp, LAD; Giancarlo Stanton, Fla; Ryan Braun, Mil.
Batting Champion: Ryan Braun, Mil: Plenty was made of Braun's overturned suspension, which I personally did not agree with, especially with the scrutiny coming with "steroid era". That aside though, Braun can hit. Losing Fielder will hurt a bit, but he's always around .330, so a boost could put him in the catbird seat for this crow. Another guy, like Kemp, who could compete for that triple crown. Runners Up: Matt Kemp, LA; Jose Reyes, Fla, Joey Votto, Cin.
Comeback Player of the Year: Buster Posey, SF; The Giants catcher has looked good and ready this spring and looks like he can't wait until he gets to play on a near daily basis when the season starts. He may take it easy behind to plate initially, maybe catching 3-4 games and playing a game at first with 2 off days per week, to start the year. But once he gets his legs back under him, probably by mid/late-April, look for the production to start piling up. The Giants need him, and I expect him, to put up something close to a .290/22/80 line and playing 135+ games. If he does play in 135+ games, he's going to produce and the Giants lineup will be better, period. Runner Up: Johan Santana, NY
Manager of the Year: Ozzie Guillen, Mia: I don't particularly care for the mouthy manager, but you can't argue with the success he had early with Chicago, and I can easily see that translating in Miami. They have a lot of Latino players on their team and Guillen should have those kids thriving, and despite his reputation as a hard-nosed guy, he really is more of a players manager then most people know. I think he was a perfect fit for Miami. Runners Up: Davey Johnson, Was; Dusty Baker, Cin.
AL Awards
MVP: Miguel Cabrera, 1B, Detroit Tigers: With the ultimate protector behind him know in Prince Fielder, he'll be seeing a lot more lefties late in ballgames, and much better pitches to hit than when he was being protected by Magglio Ordonez. Probably goes for .340/45/140/1.500 OPS. Runners Up: Albert Pujols, LAA; Josh Hamilton, Tex; Robinson Cano, NYY.
Cy Young: C.C. Sabathia, NY Yankees: The big lefty is in his third season in the Bronx, and they say the third is the charm. I foresee huge things not only for Sabathia, but the rest of the Yankees, as long as they keep their left-sided of their infield healthy. Sabathia could very well make it to 25 wins this year and always has the era around 3 or below and over a K-per-inning to verify his dominance. Runners Up: Jered Weaver, LAA; Justin Verlanded, Det; David Price, TB.
Home Run Champ: Jose Bautista, Toronto: The dude has been on an unbelievable streak since 2010 started, and I don't see it coming to an end any time too soon. AL pitchers just can't get the guy out as he's been compared to a right-handed version of Barry Bonds. With an improved Blue Jays Lineup, He may reach 55 this year, in a park that is equal to pitchers and hitters. If he played in a small yard like in Cinci, Houston or Texas, he'd probably hit 75. Runners Up: Prince Fielder, Det; Mark Teixiera, NYY; Evan Longoria, TB.
Batting Champion: Adrian Gonzalez, Boston: He plays in a hitters yard, in a good lineup and is one of the better selective power guys in the game. He's always around .330 and this year, his 3rd in the AL, should have him around .350. Runners Up: Migeul Cabrera, Det; Michael Young, Tex; Jacoby Ellsbury, Bos.
Comeback Player of the Year: Adam Dunn, Chicago: The Big lefty has hit some mammoth shots this spring, but again is hitting for a low batting average, but I have a hard time seeing him not improve upon his 11 HR and 44 RBI in 2011. He's never been a great average guy, but he should at least be around .240-.250, and will return to the 30 HR category, likely collecting 100 RBI's on the way. He's just to good (very selective) and strong (40 HR per-year in Cinci every year as starter) to have another down year without big production. Runners Up: Kendrys Morales, LAA, Chone Figgins, Sea.
Manager of the Year: Ned Yost, Kansas City: Yost has been a big part of the Royals big leap in the last two seasons, helping players like Alex Gordon and Eric Hosmer become instant stars. This year, in a weaker Central division, the Royals look to stand out even more, so much so that an injury here, or a bad break there for Detroit could have them as the default favorites in the Central. Most impressive, perhaps, is that he makes this team competitive with Bruce Chen as it's ace. Runners Up: Mike Scioscia, LAA, Jim Leyland, Det; Bobby Valentine, Bos.
NL Awards
MVP: Matt Kemp, OF, Dodgers: Probably a year to late, as Kemp for all intent and purposes, should have won the award last season. This year, he's talking about his goal being a 50-50 season, which has never been done in baseball before, and I wouldn't put it past him. Maybe not 50-50, but I think another 45-40 year with a good .330 average will again be expected and reached by the 27 year-old center fielder. Don't forget he plays center field at a gold-glove caliber. Runners Up: Hanley Ramirez, Mia; Justin Upton, AZ; Joey Votto, Cin.
Cy Young: Josh Johnson, Miami Marlins: If this guy stays healthy for his full 30 starts, it's hard to find a better arm than Johnson. He's been dominant this spring, showing now ill-effects from the injury, and is throwing in the high-90's with ease and no pain. All this, with an improved Marlins team, could lead to 20 win season and if your looking for a possible sub-2 era, this guy may have the best shot. Runners Up: Clayton Kershaw, LAD; Tim Lincecum, SF; Adam Wainwright, Stl.
Rookie of the Year: Bryce Harper, Was: This kid is going to be a monster when he arrives, and I look at the impact Posey had on the Giants upon his arrival, and see much of the same with Harper. He'll start in the minors, but Washington will want him sooner than later, and even in 400 at-bats, he's got 25-30 HR potential, with speed, good defense and a good average to boot. Runners Up: Yonder Alonso, SD; Drew Pomeranz, Col.
Home Run Champion: Jay Bruce, Cin; Bruce is coming into the year with some quiet hype behind him. He's got raw power and now has a couple of good years under his belt and could be ready to explode. I think 45 homers would be easily reachable in that yard for Bruce. Runners Up: Matt Kemp, LAD; Giancarlo Stanton, Fla; Ryan Braun, Mil.
Batting Champion: Ryan Braun, Mil: Plenty was made of Braun's overturned suspension, which I personally did not agree with, especially with the scrutiny coming with "steroid era". That aside though, Braun can hit. Losing Fielder will hurt a bit, but he's always around .330, so a boost could put him in the catbird seat for this crow. Another guy, like Kemp, who could compete for that triple crown. Runners Up: Matt Kemp, LA; Jose Reyes, Fla, Joey Votto, Cin.
Comeback Player of the Year: Buster Posey, SF; The Giants catcher has looked good and ready this spring and looks like he can't wait until he gets to play on a near daily basis when the season starts. He may take it easy behind to plate initially, maybe catching 3-4 games and playing a game at first with 2 off days per week, to start the year. But once he gets his legs back under him, probably by mid/late-April, look for the production to start piling up. The Giants need him, and I expect him, to put up something close to a .290/22/80 line and playing 135+ games. If he does play in 135+ games, he's going to produce and the Giants lineup will be better, period. Runner Up: Johan Santana, NY
Manager of the Year: Ozzie Guillen, Mia: I don't particularly care for the mouthy manager, but you can't argue with the success he had early with Chicago, and I can easily see that translating in Miami. They have a lot of Latino players on their team and Guillen should have those kids thriving, and despite his reputation as a hard-nosed guy, he really is more of a players manager then most people know. I think he was a perfect fit for Miami. Runners Up: Davey Johnson, Was; Dusty Baker, Cin.
____________________________________________
AL Playoff Results:
Wild Card Round:
Rangers over Red Sox
AL Divisional Round:
Yankees over Rangers
Angels over Tigers
ALCS:
Angels over Yankees (7 games)
NL Playoff Results
Wild Card Round:
D-Backs over Braves
Divisional Round:
Giants over Cardinals
D-Backs over Marlins
NLCS
Giants over D-Backs (7 games)
World Series
Angels over Giants (6 games)
Wild Card Round:
Rangers over Red Sox
AL Divisional Round:
Yankees over Rangers
Angels over Tigers
ALCS:
Angels over Yankees (7 games)
NL Playoff Results
Wild Card Round:
D-Backs over Braves
Divisional Round:
Giants over Cardinals
D-Backs over Marlins
NLCS
Giants over D-Backs (7 games)
World Series
Angels over Giants (6 games)
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