The Baseball Writers of America have announced the finalists for their awards for the just completed baseball season. It is a good bet that few of my original predictions for the winners will be accurate. Hopefully, these new predictions will be slightly better, especially since I’ll have a 33% chance of being right.
American League
Most Valuable Player: Michael Brantley, Mike Trout, Victor Martinez
Mike Trout was my pre-season selection to win this award, and I think, for once, I might have gotten one right. With Miguel Cabrera out of the picture, thanks to an injury-plagued campaign, Trout should bring home the award that many thought he deserved the past 2 seasons.
Cy Young Award: Chris Sale, Felix Hernandez, Corey Kluber
My initial guess of David Price obviously did not make the cut. While Chris Sale is the sentimental choice around these parts, smart money says that Felix Hernandez will take home the prize.
Manager of the Year: Buck Showalter, Mike Scioscia, Ned Yost
Once again, I didn’t make any predictions for this award prior to the season. Normally, I would go with Ned Yost, who led the Royals to the post-season for the first time since 1985, but if there is one thing the national media agrees on, it is how bad Ned Yost is as a manager. My guess is that the award will go to Buck Showalter, who lead the Orioles to their first division title since 1997.
Rookie of the Year: Jose Abreu, Dellin Betances, Matt Shoemaker
Another award I didn’t predict prior to the season. This one should be a no-brainer. I would expect Jose Abreu to bring the award back to the south side for the first time since Ozzie Guillen in 1985.
National League
Most Valuable Player: Clayton Kershaw, Andrew McCutchen, Giancarlo Stanton
I keep expecting Jason Heyward to have a huge breakout season and win the MVP, but, once again, he turned in a solid, if not spectacular, season. My best guess here is that Clayton Kershaw will bring home this, and possibly one other, award.
Cy Young Award: Johnny Cueto, Clayton Kershaw, Adam Wainwright
My initial guess of Stephen Strasburg was a calculated risk that Clayton Kershaw wouldn’t bring home his 3rd award in the last 4 years. That seems to have been a miscalculation, as Kershaw is likely to take this award as well.
Manager of the Year: Bruce Bochy, Clint Hurdle, Matt Williams
While Bochy would be the runaway pick if the voting were done after the World Series, I would assume that Matt Williams will win the award for leading the Nationals to the playoffs in his first year as manager.
Rookie of the Year: Jacob deGrom, Billy Hamilton, Kolten Wong
My guess is that speedster Billy Hamilton, who surprised many by having some actual offensive skills beyond stealing bases, will take home this award.