With many of the awards coming out for baseball 15 months after the season is over, it got me in the reflective mood. I thought it was high time I handed out some fantasy awards of my own voted upon by yours truly.
MVP – Can you remember a season where a guy many grabbed near the end of a draft, or picked up during the season, had such an impact in every single league the way Mike Trout did this season? He turned basement dwellers into title contenders overnight (including the Angels). He completely changed the landscape of keeper leagues and caused more nerd fighting than most are accustomed to. (Who didn’t offer half their team for this guy?) It’s hard not to agree who the MVP of fantasy was this season. Whom I feel bad for is the guy everyone willas the “next Mike Trout” next season. I have a feeling guys like Manny Machado are going to be under a bit more pressure than normal come next season.
Comeback (because of an offseason PED scandal) player of the year – After the end of the 2011 season, everyone was drinking the Ryan Braun Kool-Aid by the gallon, but then (gasp!) the PED scandal struck, which became one of the most talked about stories during the offseason, which led to the Ryan Braun bash fest, causing him to slip in nearly every single draft. What did Braun do? He put up a .319 AVG, 108 R, 41 HR, 112 RBI and 30 SB season.
Cy Young – It’s hard to imagine with only one voter, but there was a tie for Cy Young. R.A. Dickey and Aroldis Chapman are going to have to share this title because both kind of came out of the woodwork to dominate the pitching categories. For most of the season, Chapman was untouchable (literally). He finished tied for seventh in saves (38) and contributed heavily in strikeouts (122). Dickey also took his game to the next level — 20 wins and 230 strikeouts from a guy picked up mostly from the waiver wire tends to alter the landscape of most leagues.
You ruined my entire season award – Troy Tulowitzki is the hands-down winner of this fine award. He was a top 10 “sure-fire” pick this year who gave you a .287 AVG, 33 R, 8 HR, 27 RBI and 2 SB. Oh, not to mention the constant “he is coming back next week” statements, which went on for the last half the season and surely sent some owners over the edge.
I knew I shouldn’t have taken a 35-year-old pitcher in the top 15 award – Poor Roy Halladay. We finally saw what seemed to be a chink in the armor on what has been an amazing career. A once sure-fire pitcher, Halladay has more question marks than upside. He is a definite stay-away for me going into next season.
ROY – See best of Mike Trout.