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Meet your 2011 AL MVP: Justin Verlander
19 Ws, 212 Ks and it's only 8/23
After getting his 19th win last night in Tampa, national writers such as ESPN’s Buster Olney and Jayson Stark and pundits like Mike Greenberg of ESPN’s Mike & Mike in the Morning radio show are starting to notice the historic brilliance of Justin Verlander’s season thus far and are not only calling for him to win the AL Cy Young, but also the Most Valuable Player.
They couldn’t be more right.
Verlander leads the league in wins, strikeouts (212) and WHIP (.88) and only trails Jered Weaver in ERA (2.28 to 2.10) who completely unraveled when the two faced each other back in July and hasn’t won a game since. JV is on track to become the first AL Triple Crown winner since Johan Santana in 2006. Did I mention he threw a no-hitter? The debate for AL Cy Young is over—now on to the MVP.
Verlander will become the first pitcher to win the MVP since Dennis Eckersley in 1992 not only because of his dominance in relation to his peers, but also because his numbers are simply staggering when put in historic context. Not only is he the first pitcher with a shot at getting his 20th win before September since “Roids” Clemens in 1997, but he also has two separate seven-game winning streaks—a feat not seen since Frank Viola pulled it off in 1988.
Aiding Verlander’s case is that while sluggers such as Jose Bautista, Curtis Granderson, Adrian Gonzalez, Dustin Pedroia and Jacoby Ellsbury have all had impressive seasons, none has distinguished himself as head-and-shoulders above the others and each has chinks in his armour. The three BoSox basically cancel each other out since it would be impossible to deem one “most valuable” even on his team, let alone the league. Bautista has tailed off significantly in the second half, batting a very mortal .268 with only 5 HRs. That leaves former Tiger, Granderson with the best case to win it. But Grandy’s .281 batting average would be the lowest of an MVP in over 40 years when Harmon Killebrew won it in with a .279 average in 1969. Voters won’t be likely to overlook those deficiencies in each of the offensive candidates when Verlander’s shining example of utter dominance is staring them in the face.
MVP voters have traditionally shunned pitchers in favor of everyday players, but when a pitcher approaches such historic dominance over his peers and no offensive player has set himself apart, they’ve occasionally lifted their informal ban—12 times in the AL since voting began in 1911 to be exact. Verlander will be lucky 13.
Verlander on pace for 24 wins, 250 Ks
Somehow I feel like I’ve neglected to write enough about what a ridiculous season Justin Verlander is having this year. That changes now.
Tonight’s 7-1 victory over the Twins marks Verlander’s MLB-leading 18th victory in 27 starts this season. Likely to get eight more starts before the playoffs, Verlander is on pace to become the first pitcher to reach 24 wins since Randy Johnson pulled off the lofty feat in 2002.
Verlander also struck out eight tonight, including his 200th batter of the season, giving him a MLB-leading 204 and putting him easily within reach of the 250 K plateau. He would only have to average 6 strikeouts per game from here on out, which is well under his 7+ per game average he’s carrying now.
Aiding his cause (tho it’s not like he needs it), the Tigers have the easiest remaining schedule among AL playoff contenders. Verlander is likely to face the Rays in Tampa, Twins in Minnesota, Royals at home, Indians in Cleveland, Twins at home, A’s in Oakland, Royals in KC, and the Indians at home in the final week of the regular season.
It’s not difficult to project the AL Cy Young front-runner getting six wins in eight starts and the 46 Ks he needs against that relatively weak competition, making him a shoo-in for the award and leading the Tigers to the Central Division crown.
Asshole of the Month: Jered Weaver
Jered Weaver: You are an asshole.
Valid arguments can be made on each side of the stupidity that happend during Sunday’s Tigers/Angels game, but Jered Weaver gets the Asshole of the Month award for throwing at Detroit catcher, Alex Avila’s head.
Say what you will about the showboating by the Tigers’ Carlos Guillen (and allegedly Magglio Ordonez), but there is simply no excuse for throwing at anyone’s head. There is no rule, written or unwritten, that can justify any action that could end someone’s career or even their life.
It’s difficult to know what started the whole brouhaha but it appears Weaver got pissed at Maggs’ marveling over his 2-run bomb in the 3rd. Perhaps sensing the Cy Young award slipping away to his counterpart on the mound, Justin Verlander, Weaver’s 10¢ brain couldn’t figure out that Ordonez wasn’t sure if the ball was going to be fair or foul immediately as the ball missed the foul pole by mere inches. He was simply following the trajectory of the ball for a moment to confirm it was a home run before putting his head down and trotting around the bases as the “unwritten rulebook” mandates. Later in the game, Weaver jawed at Magglio after a fly out as he passed the mound on his way back to the dugout, presumably about his perceived slight.
Admittedly, Carlos Guillen acted like a clown with his subsequent stare down and waltz around the diamond after his 7th inning solo shot, but Weaver’s overreaction was borderline criminal. After screaming at Guillen and receiving a warning from home plate umpire, Hunter Wendelstedt, Weaver promptly fired his first pitch directly at Avila’s head. Luckily, he was able to barely duck under the missile, otherwise, the unthinkable may have happened and I might be writing about a tragedy while Weaver sits in a jail cell. If he wanted to retaliate, hit him in the backside or—here’s a novel idea—strike the guy out!
Baseball’s “unwritten rulebook” is a very tedious and often childish text authored by thin-skinned players and coaches who can’t handle the slightest assault on their enormous, yet incredibly fragile egos. Justin Verlander was even guilty of referencing it’s stupidity when he stared down the LA’s Erick Aybar after he attempted to break up Verlander’s no-hit bid with a bunt to lead off the 8th. In a 3-0 game Aybar has every right to do whatever he can to get on base, no matter what historical feat the opposing pitcher is about to achieve. To quote former NY Jets’ coach, Herman Edwards: “You PLAY to WIN the GAME! HELLO?“ Fortunately, Verlander decided to simply glare at Aybar and not jeopardize the Angels’ next batter’s career and life by hurling a 100 mph projectile at his head to retaliate.
After the game, Angels center fielder, Torii Hunter put it best when he said “I thought that was all stupid. Everybody was stupid.” I couldn’t agree more, but Weaver’s dangerous, idiotic and disproportionate reaction is what sets him apart to make him the Asshole of the Month. Congrats.
All in: PV’s 2011 Predictions
The magic crystal baseball says...
Let me look into my crystal baseball for this year’s prediction…
I’m as excited as Smitty to be writing about baseball again, and luckily the off-season was busy enough to write an article here and there. I spent most of the off-season basking in the glow of how accurate I was in predicting things last season. The White Sox and Milwaukee Brewers kept me from perfection in the preseason predictions, but nothing kept me from perfection in the playoffs. Let’s not forget that I had accurately picked the Giants to be in the World Series in May.
As Smitty pointed out in his post yesterday, it’s been an interesting off-season with signings, blow-ups, and something more serious, concussions. All the drama of the off-season will be answered by October, and for some teams will be answered by June.
AL East Division Champions: Boston Red Sox
While the Boston Red Sox seem to be the clear-cut favorites by making the biggest splash this off-season with the signings of Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, and Bobby Jenks let’s not forget about a team on the rise, the Toronto Blue Jays. I’ve forgotten about the Yankees already, as they keep getting older and less talented. Where Boston failed to improve was starting pitching, but it won’t be enough to keep them from winning the division with their All-Star offense. The Yankees have a strong chance of finishing behind the Blue Jays this year, with no true fourth and fifth starters. It never works in Chicago and it certainly will not work in the AL East. We’re shipping up to Boston!
AL Central Division Champions: Chicago White Sox
I’ve never been happier with the White Sox front office. Making all the right moves for the team and releasing dead weight, Bobby Jenks and Scott Linebrink aka Linestink, to improved the bullpen. They signed Adam Dunn and Jesse Crain (ex-Twin and proven set-up man), and resigned Paul Konerko and AJ Pierzynski. It looks like Jake Peavy will be back in the rotation by the end of April, and all should be well with the White Sox. For the Minnesota Twins to repeat they need a lot of things to go well for them, including Justin Morneau to return to form post concussion and for Joe Mauer to hit more than one home run at Target Field. I’m also not convinced that the 70′s porn mustache of Carl Pavano will continue to baffle AL Central hitters. The White Sox this year truly have the makings of a World Series ball club.
AL West Division Champions: Texas Rangers
How you cannot pick the Rangers to win this division is beyond me? Not only do they have young proven arms from last season, they also have a young proven offense from last season. To me this adds up to an AL West laugher. Everyone’s waiting for the Josh Hamilton implosion or the first trip to the DL for Nelson Cruz, not sure you should be counting on that. The Rangers prove what a good front office can do for you, and while I enjoyed the book Moneyball it doesn’t win you championships, it only wins you divisions. Money wins you championships and Oakland does not have it, and the Angels and Mariners are in a state of flux.
AL Wild Card: Toronto Blue Jays
I love the look of this team, they have a stable of young arms that will watch their ERA’s take a dive under four this season and they have more than enough pop to give the Red Sox a run for their money. I don’t think anyone expects Jose Bautista to hit 54 home runs again, but he will be in the 40′s along with 30-plus candidates Adam Lind and Travis Snider.
NL East Division Champions: Philadelphia Phillies
Best regular season rotation ever assembled, however the post season for many of the veteran Philly staff has not been friendly. So, while I think they’ll have no problems winning the division I do not see a World Series in their future. This older veteran staff pitched a lot of innings last year and will be worn down by October. As far as offense goes, well it’s hard to tell if the Braves have a better offense than Philly. I’ll say this, if Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins are not in 2009 form the Phillies will have some problems, but not enough to derail a 95 win season.
NL Central Division Champions: Milwaukee Brewers
I was a year early when I picked the Brewers last season, but this is their year. Zack Greinke will return from his rib injury to lead a staff that has been improved by his addition and Shawn Marcum. Let’s not forget that Prince Fielder is in a contract year, which will lead to numbers that will surpass Albert Pujols this season. Let’s talks about Albert Pujols for a minute, I see an injury in his future. I can’t support the Reds because of the Dusty Baker factor, and with injuries to the Cardinals pitching staff; well they will not be there. As for the Cubs, well I’ll give them credit for not putting Carlos Silva in the rotation but this team is a year away from competing again. I have a feeling next year, I’ll have the Chicago Cubs in bold, be patient, a solid nucleus is forming.
NL West Division Champions: San Francisco Giants
Why are both West divisions so weak? They are always the hardest division to predict since they are all kind of the same team. The Giants fresh off a World Series victory should prevail with the best young rotation in baseball. I’m going to stick with the Giants here despite the recent news of that Brian Wilson may not be available for the opener and Cody Ross’s strained calf muscle. As for Smitty stating the Giants were “lucky,” well they won 92 games last season, I would hardly call that lucky. That’s nine more wins than St. Louis had when they EMBARRASSED THE TIGERS. In 2008, the Phillies won 92 games; no one accused them of barely making the playoffs.
NL Wild Card: Atlanta Braves
A solid rotation and an improved offense make the Braves all but a shoe-in for this spot.
World Series: Chicago White Sox over the Atlanta Braves in 7
Ozzie will square off against his old team one year too late. What a great story it would have been for Ozzie to manage against mentor Bobby Cox. That series probably would have had the most ejections in World Series history, instead the Sox and Braves will battle to the brink with the White Sox clinching game seven at home because the AL will win the All-Star game this year. I feel dumber for having to type that an exhibition game decides home field advantage in the playoffs, but that’s another article for another day.
AL MVP: Josh Hamilton, TEX
AL Cy Young: John Danks, CHI
NL MVP: Prince Fielder, MIL
NL Cy Young: Tim Lincecum, SF
Cy Young?
The unluckiest pitcher in baseball
Is it possible to win a Cy Young with a losing record? It would seem that might be the only way John Danks will be able to win one this season, as he fell to 3-3 Wednesday evening at the Cell against the LA Angels. In a battle of mediocrity the Angels got the best of the White Sox, as the Sox had an opportunity to make up some ground on the Twins but failed to do so.
This game turned into a pitchers duel between Danks and Joe Saunders with so little offense that when the Cubs game, that had started an hour earlier, entered the ninth the Angels and Sox had started the eight. They made up an hour. The Sox had opportunities and did nothing with them despite having a .347 batting average with runners in scoring position in their last six games.
The real story is that John Danks fell to 3-3 on the year and only allowed two earned runs. Danks has pitched into at least the seventh inning in six of his eight outings this season and has not allowed more than three earned runs in any start this season. He has seven quality starts and his shakiest outing of the season consisted of only lasting five innings with four runs but only two earned. In six starts he’s allowed two runs or less, yet he has a 3-3 record.
Danks would most likely be 8-0 on the New York Yankees, but he’s on the “Every Other” White Sox, he always seems to be on the wrong side of the other.
