On Deck Circle 7/3/17: MLB Midseason Awards

By Pat Luhta, @PLuhta


We have reached the halfway point in the 2017 MLB season. While there is plenty of baseball left to be played, we can always take a look at the year that has been so far and talk about the frontrunners for the major MLB awards. Here at the "On Deck Circle", we will hand out midseason awards for the AL and NL rookie of the year, MVP and Cy Young award along with who is also in the running currently for these prestigious awards.



AMERICAN LEAGUE


ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

WINNER: Aaron Judge, OF, New York Yankees – This one is a no brainer, Judge doesn’t need to play another inning and he already has this award wrapped up. He is not only leading all rookies in home runs, but is leading the entire MLB in that category. He is also 2nd in the AL in batting average, combine that with his impressive power and it makes sense that he is also leading the entire MLB in OPS(on base+slugging.) Judge has not only wrapped up this award but has put himself in contention for many other awards and honors as well, needless to say it was quite a first half for Aaron Judge.

RUNNER-UP: Andrew Benintendi, OF, Boston Red Sox – A far distant 2nd place in rookie of the year shouldn’t lessen the impact that he has had so far this season. Benintendi is currently batting .275 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI’s, a very solid first full season in the majors currently. He is a big reason why the Red Sox offense is one of the better ones in the AL and he is doing his part in keeping them a playoff team.


CY YOUNG AWARD

WINNER: Jason Vargas, SP, Kansas City Royals - In a league filled with guys like Corey Kluber, Dallas Kuechel, Chris Sale and Yu Darvish, it’s Jason Vargas that is currently the AL Cy Young award winner. At 34 years old, Vargas is putting up career best numbers, leading the AL in wins, WAR and ERA while being 8th in WHIP. He has only started 12 games in the past 2 years combined so this comes as a surprise especially considering his career best ERA was 3.71 that he posted in 2014. Nonetheless, name value should not matter when deciding these awards and right now Jason Vargas has been the best pitcher in the AL.

RUNNER-UP: Chris Sale, SP, Boston Red Sox – The Boston Red Sox gave up a lot in order to trade for Chris Sale and it’s been worth every little bit. He leads the AL in K’s and WHIP and is 3rd in ERA, posting a 10-3 record. He has been the Red Sox workhorse all season due to injury to David Price and issues with other starting pitching, he has been heavily relied on and has come through for Boston so far. This is a close race currently with Sale having as good of a case as any for this award, will be a fun race to watch the rest of the way.


MVP

WINNER: Aaron Judge, OF, New York Yankees - Aaron Judge is not only the current rookie of the year, but the entire league MVP. The Yankees are a playoff team and much of the credit goes to Judge and his offensive production. 2nd in batting average, 1st in home runs, 1st in on base %, 1st in slugging % and 1st in OPS in the American League to go along with his 4.8 WAR(also 1st in AL.) The Yankees are 3rd or 4th in the division without his production and not a playoff team, instead they are in a battle with the Red Sox for the AL East and looking to win the division.

RUNNER-UP: Carlos Correa, SS, Houston Astros - The runner-up here could go to either Houston Astros middle infielder, Carlos Correa or Jose Altuve. Both are nearly identical in stats, Correa just adds a bit more pop off the bat while Altuve adds the speed in the lineup. Right now, they'll be splitting votes depending on who you ask, so there's some gray area there as far as value to the team whereas Aaron Judge is solidified in being the main reason why the Yankees offense is as good as it is. Correa deserves a ton of credit for being the best player on the best team in the AL, but in terms in value he falls just a bit short here.




NATIONAL LEAGUE


ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

WINNER: Cody Bellinger, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers - Much like the AL Rookie of the year, this one is also a no brainer. Bellinger was called up from triple A on April 25th and since then, he has been a nightmare to opposing pitchers. His 24 home runs leads the National League, is batting .267 and is currently 5th in the NL in OPS. No other rookie comes close to matching the offensive numbers that Bellinger is putting up, easily the NL rookie of the year so far.

RUNNER-UP: Josh Bell, 1B, Pittsburgh Pirates - Josh Bell is putting together a pretty solid rookie campaign as well. While batting average and on base percentage leaves some to be desired, he does have 15 home runs this season so he is providing some power for the Pirates. He's not putting up Bellinger numbers but not many players are, good rookie season so far for him still.


CY YOUNG

WINNER: Max Scherzer, SP, Washington Nationals - This race for Cy Young in the 2nd half of the season will be something to watch, but right now at the midseason point the award goes to Max Scherzer. Leading the NL in ERA with 2.06 with a ridiculous .78 WHIP, Scherzer has been close to untouchable in most of his starts. This also is why a pitcher's W-L record is so deceptive and not a good measure on how good a pitcher is, despite leading the NL in ERA, K's and WHIP , Scherzer is 9-5 on the season. Can't fault a pitcher for pitching well and not getting run support, the stats speak for themselves and Scherzer deserves the Cy Young award.

RUNNER-UP: Clayton Kershaw, SP, Los Angeles Dodgers - Kershaw is right behind Scherzer for this award and trails him in many categories. Kershaw is 2nd in the NL in ERA, K's and WHIP, with Scherzer leading those categories. They are very close though in them so a lot can change in the next 3 months and will be exciting to see how this plays out but right now, Kershaw is just edged out for this award.


MVP

WINNER: Paul Goldschmidt, 1B, Arizona Diamondbacks - The Arizona Diamondbacks are a surprise team this season with one of the best offenses in the league. The most consistent and overall best player on offense for them has been Paul Goldschmidt, who is having yet another stellar season. Without Goldschmidt, there's no telling where this team would be, he is batting .317 with 19 home runs and leads the National League in RBI's. Arizona's offense flows through him and he is currently the NL MVP.

RUNNER-UP : Cody Bellinger, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers - On April 25th, the Dodgers were 10-11 and just called Cody Bellinger up to take the spot of Adrian Gonzalez, who was headed to the DL. Since then, the Dodgers are 44-17 and leading the best division in baseball(NL West.) During that stretch, they also lost Justin Turner for 19 games and Bellinger was there to pick up the slack and then some. There are many candidates for NL MVP, Nolan Arenado and Bryce Harper immediately come to mind, but what Bellinger has done while players like Gonzalez and Turner have been out is MVP worthy. The Dodgers offense hasn't skipped a beat in their absence, in large due to Bellinger's 24 home runs and 56 RBI's.

This Week In The Show 7.25.16: Top 5 Trades MLB Fans Want To See

By Alex Hale, @ThatCLESportGuy


We’re only a week away from the Trade Deadline and things over the weekend have heated with new teams emerging as potential buyers and sellers.  Now with the Trade Deadline a week away, I thought I’d finish up my 3-part series about the trading deadline with 5 deals the fans should be rooting for.  With this article I’m going to throw away my Indians bias and put on my MLB fan cap to find deals that will make the ride into October much more interesting.  I’ll admit most of these trades probably won’t happen, but in my opinion would make other Divisional and potential Pennant races that much more interesting.  So let’s get crazy with this shall we?

Jay Bruce to the Mets- The Mets need offensive help…FAST.  But trivia time!  Who leads the Mets in Avg., HRs, RBIs, Hits, SLG %, and On Base %?  Well there’s one answer…Yoenis Cespedes.  The Mets offense has been so pitiful that they’re relying on James Loney and Jose Reyes to fill the void for them.  That isn’t going to work.  Jay Bruce offers the kind of bat they need in the lineup to protect Cespedes.  Bruce is having a career year and most certainly could be the bat the Mets are looking for.  We know the Mets have the pitching to get the job done, but they need another big bat in this lineup, Jay Bruce offers that.  The Mets could offer up rehabbing SP Zach Wheeler who is young with big league experience that maybe in a year or two could become the pitcher most scouts thought he could become, a potential front of the rotation starter.

Trade Proposal- Mets acquire OF Jay Bruce in exchange Reds acquire SP Zach Wheeler

Chris Archer to the Dodgers- With Clayton Kershaw potentially out for a long time, the Dodgers are left to look at potential options on the market.  While Chris Sale would be a great fit in LA, the Dodgers have enough lefty starters.  Now remember, current LA Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman was the GM of Tampa Bay when they acquired Chris Archer from the Cubs.  We all know the Dodgers have an extremely talented and deep farm system that could easily make a move to get Archer.  Without Kershaw, Archer fits perfectly in LA and if Kershaw comes back this year, Kershaw and Archer will be nightmares for teams.  With Archer being locked up after signing a long term deal with Tampa Bay in 2015, the price will be steep, but the Dodgers can easily afford it.  I could also see Tampa Bay throw in a player to get rid of that might offer Dodgers depth to make another move.

Trade Proposal- Dodgers acquire SP Chris Archer and OF Desmond Jennings in exchange Rays acquire SP Jose De Leon, SP Grant Holmes, OF Starling Heredia

Wade Davis to the Nationals- And just like that…the Nationals get arguably the best closer in baseball.  With a good starting rotation and a solid lineup led by Bryce Harper, the Nationals are sitting pretty at the top of the NL East, only really lacking an elite closer.  While Jonathan Papelbon has done a good job, Wade Davis puts that bullpen over the top.  If the Nationals really want to bring a World Series back to Washington DC for the first time since Walter Johnson pitched them to one in the 1920s, they gotta get that elite closer.  Kansas City is being wise to shop him to replenish a farm system that was sold off last year to get Johnny Cueto and Ben Zobrist for their World Series run.  Nationals would really need to give a lot up for a rental, but Washington has to realize, to really have a chance to keep Bryce Harper, you gotta go for it to prove to him he should stay.

Trade Proposal- Nationals acquire CP Wade Davis in exchange Royals acquire SP Erick Fedde, OF Andrew Stevenson, and RP Koda Glover

Carlos Beltran to the Indians- While this isn’t the biggest splash in the world, the Indians could really use another bat to bolster their lineup and Beltran fits the mold perfectly.  Having a great season at only 39 years young, Beltran is an experienced veteran who brings a middle of the order presence to the Indians.  More importantly Beltran has a great history performing in big spots in the playoffs.  With the uncertainty of Michael Brantley’s return, Beltran can provide a more stable option offensively playing in the OF.  While he is a downgrade defensively, the Indians need to find another bat as evidenced by the Indians struggles with RISP against the Orioles.  While the Indians need to find a reliever, they must find another bat for the middle of the lineup.

Trade Proposal- Indians acquire OF Carlos Beltran in exchange Yankees acquire SP Mike Clevinger and SS Yu-Cheng Chang

Chris Sale to the Astros- First off, how is no National reporter putting Houston in the mix?  Only 2.5 games back from the Rangers and starting to catch fire, the Astros are a perfect match for Chris Sale.  With 2015 Cy Young winner Dallas Kuechel struggling, they need an ace and Sale gives them that.  The Astros were my Preseason World Series pick and with Chris Sale supported by that Astros lineup…good luck everyone.  Reports have said that teams might have to pay 5 Top prospects, but after Chris Sale’s jersey fiasco Saturday night, the price might come down if the team doesn’t want to handle him anymore.  It will take a lot to get one of the best pitchers in the game and trust me, the Astros have the firepower to get him.

Trade Proposal- Astros acquire SP Chris Sale in exchange White Sox acquire SS Alex Bregman, OF Daz Cameron, SP Francis Martes, OF Derek Fisher, 2B/OF Tony Kemp


Now these trades aren’t predictions, but these are trades every fan should be rooting for to happen.  All of these trades would make the next few months of the baseball season very interesting.  While I don’t expect half of these to even happen, all I know is that these are very realistic scenarios for these players.  That will do it for my Trade Deadline Preview articles, you can bet I’ll have a Post-Trade Deadline article here next week.  We’re already seeing the madness of the Trade Deadline pick up and you can bet as teams finally figure out where they stand as buyers and sellers that the trade market will only intensify with trades we might not see coming.  Trust me we’ve seen trades come out of nowhere before and you can bet with this trade deadline, one thing is for sure, anything can and will happen at this Trade Deadline.