SB Nation - Robinson Cano

Utility Options

Brandon C. — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 13:00:31 -0000

More photos » by Kathy Willens - AP

New York Yankees' Ramiro Pena smiles while heading to the dugout after hitting his first home run in the majors, in the fifth inning against the Kansas City Royals in a baseball game at Yankee Stadium on Monday, Sept. 28, 2009, in New York.

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The Yankees have had a pretty eventful off-season so far and it looks like they are nearing the end of their moves. It is always possible that the Yankees will go after a Johnny Damon or a Mark DeRosa, but with the way Brian Cashman is talking it doesn't seem too likely. Let's say the Yankees do not make another move this offseason: What would the offensive roster look like?

DEFINITE PLAYERS ON THE ROSTER:

C- Jorge Posada

1B- Mark Teixeira

2B- Robinson Cano

3B- Alex Rodriguez

SS- Derek Jeter

LF- Brett Gardner

CF- Curtis Granderson

RF- Nick Swisher

DH- Nick Johnson

PROBABLES:

OF- Jamie Hoffmann

POSITION BATTLES:

Backup Catcher: Francisco Cervelli vs. Mike Rivera

Utility Infielder: Ramiro Pena vs. Reegie Corona vs. Kevin Russo vs. Eduardo Nunez

POSSIBLE:

1B- Juan Miranda

Overall, while the starters are all great, the utility players may be a problem. I predict that Cervelli, Pena, and Miranda do make the roster, but there still may be a problem. Last year the Yankees went into the year with Cody Ransom as their starting third baseman and Ramiro Pena as the backup. They have shown no reason to believe they wouldn't do that again. Do I think it is a problem? Not necessarily, but with all of these young backups there is certainly a risk that they will struggle in the bigs. Personally, I would sign someone like Miguel Cairo to compete for the utility job while mentoring the youngsters.

P.S. Sorry for not commenting back to any comments last night. I was at the New York Islanders vs. Toronto Maple Leafs game. I got to meet the team before the game and get autographs after!

DiamondView: 2009 New York Yankees

Tommy Bennett — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 21:00:27 -0000

I am very pleased to announce our newest series, in which we will give you a peek at the hitting performances from 2009, team-by-team, division-by-division, using Justin Bopp's excellent DiamondView. The honor of going first falls to the World Champion New York Yankees. But first, let me explain what our data expert (Jeff Zimmerman) and our graphics expert (Justin Bopp) have cooked up for you all.

There are four categories per player: defense (UZR/150), speed (EqBRR), power (ISO), and on-base (OBP). Each category is scaled as a percentile of the major league totals (for more details, see the original article linked above). Also included on each chart (in dark tones behind the image for the player) is the positional average at the player's dominant position. Justin then sprinkles his magic graphics dust (I really have no idea how he does it), and the results are like you see here.

Three caveats before we begin. First, we have excluded the DH because it's abhorrent to the spirit of baseball since there is no meaningful way to rate their defense. Second, the data used include only last year's performance. Finally, catcher defense remains problematic, so each catcher is given the same defensive mark. This is certainly not optimal, and we'll see if we can't come up with a better way to do things going forward. If you have a suggestion, please leave it in the comments.

Without further ado, here are the 2009 New York Yankees.

1B Mark Teixeira

UZR didn't like Teixeira's 2009 season one bit, but Yankee fans tell a different tune. In all likelihood he'll bounce back with the glove next year. That'll make him a nearly all-around player, as you can see his hitting is phenomenal. I think he likes his new home park.

2B Robinson Cano

Cano put together a nice season with the bat for just about any position, but especially for the keystone. He's not a great baserunner and his fielding is below league average, but so long as the bat plays, Cano plays.

3B Alex Rodriguez

The fielding is the only thing that keeps ARod from retaining "complete player" on his list of titles (which now, thankfully, includes "The Man Who Destroyed the Myth of Clutch"). It makes me wonder about the accuracy on an individual basis of the fielding spectrum, at least insofar as players can move fluidly across it. Imagine a world where ARod stuck at short.

C Jorge Posada

Posada versus the aging curve! Sometimes, the best way to win a race against time is to start late. Since Posada didn't become a regular until age 26 in 1998, he is able to put up an ISO that is in the 90th percentile of all players at age 37. He's death on the base-paths and may see considerable time at DH over the coming seasons, but there's still a lot of color on that chart.

CF Melky Cabrera

The number one way to get a rise out of a Yankee fan is either to praise or disparage Melky Cabrera. I'm not sure why a player who is so close to league average causes so much disagreement, but it may be because it is sometimes hard to look at league average and appreciate it. He might have been over his head in '09, but he's earned an every day job.

LF Johnny Damon

He's flying that kite-shaped set of tools to free agency, and likely won't be Bomber in '10. His fielding, never world-beating, is approaching liability status. His bat has turned out to be quite the asset, and he still turns it up on the bases. He'll fall back on offense and bounce back on defense and will provide moderate value somewhere.

RF Nick Swisher

Not to be confused with the rap collective that frequently finds itself posted up in a parking lot, Swisher's house is built on a foundation of plate discipline and prodigious power. Tough to believe that he was traded for peanuts a year ago. Anyone heard from Jeff Marquez or Wilson Betemit lately?

SS Derek Jeter

Praising Jeter's tangible skills is the new hating on Jeter's intangibles and defense.

There are two camps in the sabermetric world: those who believe leadoff skills are unique and those who believe batting order is a Triassic relic. I happen to fall into the former group, and Patriot has demonstrated Jeter's excellence at the essential leadoff skills. His 96th percentile on-base skills are the best thing you could have getting five plate appearances a game, and his base running acts like a force multiplier.

Next up: Boston Red Sox

editor: Updated all images to include transparent position averages. - jbopp

New York Yankees notes: All things Johnson

Ed Valentine — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 12:44:53 -0000

More photos » by Henny Ray Abrams - AP

Nick Johnson

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What does the Nick Johnson signing mean for the New York Yankees? Perhaps the best assessment comes from Tyler Kepner of the New York Times.

Losing [Johnny] Damon will hurt. Even General Manager Brian Cashman acknowledged on Thursday that Damon is "the perfect two-hole hitter for this place." The Yankees will miss Damon’s speed, his quality at-bats and his ability to put the bat on the ball. And they will miss his personality, of course. But the Yankees priced Damon at about $9-10 million per year, for two years at the most, and they believe they can live with Johnson.

Johnson’s assets and drawbacks are obvious. The good: he’s a left-handed hitter, he knows the Yankees and he got on base at a better rate last year (.426) than everybody except Joe Mauer and Albert Pujols. The bad: he’s slow, he’s prone to injury, and he plays a position already occupied by Mark Teixeira.

Then again, by keeping Johnson off the field, the Yankees can limit his risk of injury, and there is no rule that says Johnson would have to be the starting D.H. every day. The Yankees could use Jorge Posada, Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter and Teixeira there as often as they like. Johnson, a happy-go-lucky guy, has been itching to play for a winner since the Yankees traded him to the Montreal Expos (remember them?) after the 2003 World Series. Also, there is this: next year’s free-agent class could be the best ever, with Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, Cliff Lee, Joe Mauer, Brandon Webb and Jayson Werth -– not to mention Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. The Yankees figure to spend an awful lot of money in that market, and they want to save payroll and keep commitments short wherever they can.

In the big picture, the Yankees are replacing Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui with Curtis Granderson and Johnson. So they swap two older left-handed hitters who made $26 million in 2009 for two younger left-handed hitters who will make about $14 million in 2010. They replace a speed guy and a slow guy with another speed guy and slow guy.

My take: I will miss Matsui and Damon, but I like the reasoning behind this. To me, that money is key. Both in terms of being able to bring in another starting pitcher this off-season and -- perhaps more importantly -- setting themselves up for a big splurge next winter.

About Damon

The apparently now former Yankee outfielder has no idea what will happen next for him. But, he is not bitter.

"I have nothing but great things to say about the Yankees. If the Nick Johnson thing works out, it will be good for them," Damon told the Daily News last night. "It's part of baseball.

"I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do. I know there are some teams interested, but the Yankees are the best organization I've been a part of so far in my career. I wish them all the best."

With the Yankees out of the picture, it will be interesting to see what kind of deal the 36-year-old Damon can get.

"I guess we'll have to see now if (agent Scott) Boras gets Damon a three-year contract," said a baseball official, who suggested the most likely landing spot for Damon will be San Francisco, although the Giants are unlikely to give him three years.

Granderson's day

The Yankees formally welcomed Granderson, in a news conference Thursday at Yankee Stadium. One of last season's big off-season prizes, CC Sabathia, was in attendance and his comments might have been the most intriguing of the day.

"I think earlier in his career, when he first came up, he was driving balls to left field, and I think he was tougher on lefties then," Sabathia said. "He was hitting the ball in the gap in left-center.

"Then he started hitting a few home runs and got a little pull-happy. I think that's why lefties were able to stay away from him and throw slower stuff and have success against him."

To help fix the situation, Granderson said that he'd like to talk to Sabathia about the way he was pitched -- two-seamers in and plenty of outs away, Sabathia said -- and also check with Robinson Cano, who has hit lefties well in his career.

But the most important advice will come from hitting coach Kevin Long, with whom Granderson spoke on Monday and is planning to see after he completes working out with outfielder Nick Swisher.

Top Moments '09: No. 9 - The Roller Coaster Ride At Fenway

ltrain2 — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:00:18 -0000

Mike Lowell celebrating his game winning 3-run home run against the New York Yankees 04/25/09.

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OTM COVERAGE: 0157H7's postgame recap of the Red Sox's memorable moment #9 of 2009
GAME RECAP: 4/25/09: New York Yankees 11 Boston Red Sox 16

What list of this nature would be complete without a good old fashioned Yankees vs. Red Sox matchup? And how can it get any better than a game featuring 27 total runs scored, a six-RBI night from the recently departed Mike Lowell, five lead changes (the last of course being the best), and a battering of newly acquired Yankees pitcher A.J. Burnett?

Yes this game had it all, ultimately resulting in what was Boston's ninth straight win at the time -- second straight over the struggling Yankees (Boston would go on to sweep New York in the 3-game set at Fenway).

The Yankees began a night that was initially billed as a pitcher's duel between former Florida Marlins teammates Josh Beckett and A.J. Burnett by jumping out to a 6-0 lead in the top half of the 4th inning, thanks in large part to Robinson Cano, who blasted a 2-run home run in the third frame and followed that up with a 2-run double in the fourth (both at the hands of Beckett) to produce the Sox's 6-run deficit.

However, the Sox's bats wouldn't let the Yankees off the hook that easy, something that became the theme of the night when everything was said and done.

Boston's offense awoke from their early game slumber in a big way during their half of the fourth inning. After Pedroia, Youkilis, and Drew filled up the bases, Jason Bay got the scoring started with an RBI single. Varitek wasted no time in continuing the onslaught slugging a grand-slam off of a now visably shaken Burnett.

Beckett settled, albiet temporarily, in the fifth by tossing a scoreless frame (quite the feat on this particular night). Burnett's half of the inning, however, failed to go as smoothly. Jacoby Ellsbury homered to right field to erase the once six run lead even quicker than it was created. With the score knotted at six runs a piece, Bay again came through big, this time knocking a double that plated both David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis. Somehow, after being down 6-0, the Sox found themselves up 8-6 heading into the sixth inning. Believe it or not, it gets even more ridiculous from here.

In possibly the worst way possible, the Yankees managed to tie the game at 8-8 in the top half of the sixth. Once iconic Red Sox outfielder Johnny Damon homered scoring Yankees captain Derek Jeter, quickly destroying the small lead that Boston had worked so hard for. Without recording an out in the sixth, Beckett's night was finished. Final line: Ugly.

Boston would again grab hold of the lead in their half of the sixth following a David Ortiz sacrifice fly that scored Nick Green. Heading into the seventh inning: Yankees 8 Red Sox 9.

By this point, you should be able to guess what happens next. If you guessed that there would be yet another lead change, then it's safe to assume that you've been doing a bang-up job paying attention so far. Good work. This time, the Yankees' runs came via a rare error from second baseman Dustin Pedroia. Berroa and Gardner both scored as a result of the play as the Sox handed the lead back to New York, 10-9.

With the star of the previous game Jason Bay standing at the plate in the seventh, the Yankees decided to intentionally walk him and take their chances with Mike Lowell. Not the right move on this night. Lowell proceded to hit a 3-run blast Over The Monster (a little self-promoting there, forgive me) giving the Red Sox a 12-10 lead. A lead that, despite the trend leading up to this point in the game, actually managed to hold up.

Cano made things interesting in the eighth by cutting the lead to one with a solo home run, his second long ball of the game, but that would be all the runs that New York would accrue on this night. Pedroia added and RBI single in the bottom of the eighth, subsequently followed by Mike Lowell's bases-clearing double, bringing us to our final score of 16-11.

Just writing this game summary has given me a splitting headache.

After the game, Bay put it best:

"It was one of the more unbelievable games I've been involved in as far as back and forth," said Red Sox left fielder Jason Bay. "It was a little bit of everything, and the bullpen again held and we got some timely hits."

Interesting facts from the Red Sox's victory over the Yankees

The six run comeback was the largest since 1968, when Boston came back after being down 9-3 to beat New York by a final score of 11-10.
Lowell started the game 0-3 with two strikeouts, stranding five baserunners, only to finish with six RBIs (the most for any Red Sox player against the Yankees since Carlton Fisk circa 1973).
The 27 total runs was tied for the fourth most scored in this rivalry at the time.
The game's two starting pitchers, Beckett and Burnett, both surrendered eight runs. The first time since 1987 that both starters in a Yankee-Red Sox matchup allowed eight or more runs. The two that accomplished the feat prior to this game? Tommy John and Roger Clemens.
Mark Teixeira became the first Yankee to register five walks in a game since Roger Maris did it back in 1962.
A total of twelve pitchers threw a combined 385 pitches, managing to retire the side in order just twice (once for each team).
The 4 hours and 21 minutes that it took to complete this game is tied for the sixth-longest non-extra inning affair in baseball history. The top two on that list belonging to, of course, the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry.

New York Yankees Team of the Decade

Ed Valentine — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 15:34:39 -0000

'Tis the season for teams of the decade. Fans around baseball, except maybe in Boston where you know they would put up a fight, have to concede that the New York Yankees are the team of the decade.

But, looking specifically at the Yankees themselves, what is THEIR Team of the Decade? Some positions, like shortstop, catcher and closer, are obvious. Others, less so.

Here is my stab at naming the New York Yankee Team of the Decade.

C -- Jorge Posada. Duh! Sorry, Francisco Cervelli fans. This one, of course, is easy.

1B -- Jason Giambi. This position presents a real conundrum. The first name that leaps to mind is Giambi, but in his seven seasons with the Yankees he played more than half the team's games at first base just twice. And, he played more than 100 games there only one. He averaged 76.8 games per season at first base as a Yankee. Tino Martinez played just three seasons, but was the full-time first baseman each of those years playing 147 games per season. Tino averaged 22 homers and 83 RBI in his three seasons. Giambi averaged 32 home runs and 94 RBI, splitting his time between first base and designated hitter. Honestly, I hate doing it, but In the end I have to go with Giambi, especially since his pair of 41-home run seasons as a Yankee came when he was the primary first baseman in 2002 and 2003.

2B -- Robinson Cano. A close call here over Alfonso Soriano, based largely on Cano having five seasons (yes, five, can you believe it?) as the starting second baseman. Soriano was terrific, averaging 32 homers, 89 RBI and 39.6 stolen bases, but was a Yankee for just three seasons before being dealt away. Cano has averaged 17 home runs, 79 RBI and has a career average of .306 in five seasons. He is also a better defender. Again, I think length of service gives this one to Cano.

SS -- Derek Jeter. Umm, who else? If I was naming one, Jeter would also be Yankee Player of the Decade. Gee, maybe I just did name one.

3B -- Alex Rodriguez. Again, a no-brainer. Gotta at least give Aaron Boone an honorable mention, though, for his 2003 home run that propelled the Yankees to the World Series.

LF -- Johnny Damon. This is, obviously, between Damon and Hideki Matsui. And, in my opinion, not a choice between which one belongs on the Team of the Decade. Rather, a choice between which one is the left fielder and which one is the designated hitter. In four New York seasons, Damon has been the primary left fielder for just two years. He has DH'ed just 29 times in those two years, however. Matsui has DH'ed 250 times in six productive New York seasons. So, he gets the left field nod.

CF -- Bernie Williams. Bern, baby, Bern! Was a fixture with the Yankees for seven of the decade's 10 seasons, and was an integral part of the lineup. Hit 136 of 287 career home runs this decade. I know many of you are still irritated by how the Yankees treated Bernie at the end, but that's done with. Let's just give him his due.

RF -- Bobby Abreu. This is another excruciatingly tough call. First, it was difficult to rule out fan favorite Paul O'Neill, whom I think with our hearts we would all probably like to give this spot to. O'Neill, though, played just two seasons this decade and in the second was a shell of himself. So, this choice is really between Abreu and Gary Sheffield. Sheffield had two dominant seasons (.290, 36, 121 and .291, 34, 123), but only played 39 games in his third season due to injury. Abreu had two excellent full seasons (.283, 16, 101, 25 steals and .296, 20, 100, 22 steals). I think Abreu gets the nod because of his impact in 2006, when he was traded to the Yankees to replace the injured Sheffield and hit .330 with 7 home runs and 42 RBI in 58 games, helping the Yankees reach the playoffs.

DH -- Hideki Matsui. The World Series MVP absolutely has to have a place on this team. In six Yankee seasons Matsui has been nothing but productive, hitting .292 and averaging 22 home runs and 99.5 RBI per season.

SP -- Andy Pettitte. Whew! Another really difficult call between Pettitte and Mike Mussina. I know 'wins' is not the only way to measure a pitcher, but for the purpose of this argument it shows how close these two are. Mussina won 123 regular-season games, including 20 at the age of 39, in seven Yankee seasons this decade. Pettitte won 111 regular-season games despite spending three wayward seasons in Houston. The real difference between Pettitte and Mussina is post-season success. 'Moose' was 5-7 in Yankee post-season career. Pettitte, this decade, is 11-5 with a World-Series clinching victory fresh in my mind. I could easily name them both, but if I had to take one it would still be Pettitte.

CL -- Mariano Rivera. The best of all time. Period.

Manager -- Joe Torre. What choice do you have here? Joe Girardi has a World Series title in his two seasons, and he will likely be around for a long time. Hopefully, one day his resume will match what Torre did in New York, but not yet. This decade may not have matched the 1990s for Torre in terms of World Series titles, but one championship, two AL pennants, and playoff appearances all eight seasons he managed the team is pretty darn impressive.

So, what do you guys think? Tell me where I'm right. And wrong. And tell me why.

New York Yankees notes: About that budget ...

Ed Valentine — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 13:03:53 -0000

Oh, boy! Not 48 hours after we heard that our New York Yankees would have a budget of about $185 million for the 2010 season, word is already out that the number is "not a hard ceiling." Who did not expect that? We should know by now that there is never a hard ceiling on Steinbrenner money, and I know I'm OK with that.

We know that re-signing Andy Pettitte is General Manager Brian Cashman's first priority this off-season, as it should be. As a backup plan, it seems the Yankees are likely to check in with just about every available free-agent starting pitcher on the planet.

NY Baseball Digest thinks all of this speculation is bad news for fans of Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain in the rotation. To me, that's a classic over-reaction to a team simply pouring over its options during the middle of the off-season.

Robinson Cano, by the way, has an idea for the rotation. He would like to see Pedro Martinez in pinstripes.

"I say he's got some more in him. He'd be good (with the Yankees), especially with the kind of team we got," said Cano. "We score, most games, four or five runs. Guy like him, we only need him like five, six innings."

Thank God Cano is a second baseman and not a general manager. Pedro would be a desperation move, and the Yankees are not desperate.

By the way, the Winter Meetings start today. Jayson Stark of ESPN looks at what he sees as the top five plot lines for the meetings.

I'm not a John Sterling fan, but Zell's Pinstripe Blog points out a fun link to a clip of Sterling's most memorable calls of the 2009 post-season.

Finally, the New York Daily News tells us Alex Rodriguez is enjoying being a champion.

SB Nation Awards: 2009 American League MVP

Jesse — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:50:09 -0000

Scioscia...Andrus...Greinke...and looky looky who completes the puzzle!

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Pts
1	Joe Mauer	Minnesota Twins	24	3	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	371
2	Ben Zobrist	Tampa Bay Rays	-	10	6	2	2	1	-	1	-	-	172
3	Mark Teixeira	New York Yankees	2	3	2	4	3	2	7	1	-	-	158
4	Derek Jeter	New York Yankees	1	5	3	4	4	2	1	1	2	1	157
5	Evan Longoria	Tampa Bay Rays	-	2	4	1	2	3	2	3	2	1	106
6	Zack Greinke	Kansas City Royals	2	3	2	1	1	-	2	-	-	-	92
7	Miguel Cabrera	Detroit Tigers	-	-	3	1	2	4	-	2	-	5	74
8	Kevin Youkilis	Boston Red Sox	-	2	-	-	1	3	1	8	1	-	69
9	Chone Figgins	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	-	3	4	1	-	1	3	1	60
10	Jason Bay	Boston Red Sox	-	1	-	4	2	-	-	1	-	2	54
11	Kendry Morales	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	4	-	-	1	-	-	1	-	39
12	Ichiro Suzuki	Seattle Mariners	-	-	1	-	2	-	1	2	2	3	37
13	Franklin Gutierrez	Seattle Mariners	-	-	-	1	1	1	3	-	1	2	34
14	Justin Verlander	Detroit Tigers	-	-	-	2	1	1	1	-	1	1	32
15	Felix Hernandez	Seattle Mariners	-	-	-	2	-	-	1	3	2	-	31
16	Jason Bartlett	Tampa Bay Rays	-	-	1	1	1	-	-	-	-	1	22
17	Alex Rodriguez	New York Yankees	-	-	1	-	1	-	1	-	-	-	18
18	Roy Halladay	Toronto Blue Jays	-	-	-	1	-	1	1	-	-	-	16
19	Adam Lind	Toronto Blue Jays	-	-	-	-	-	2	-	-	1	4	16
20	Dustin Pedroia	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	4	1	13
21	Bobby Abreu	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	1	1	-	12
22	Aaron Hill	Toronto Blue Jays	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	-	-	12
23	Mariano Rivera	New York Yankees	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	1	1	9
24	Torii Hunter	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	8
25	Brian Roberts	Baltimore Orioles	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	-	-	7
26	CC Sabathia	New York Yankees	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	1	-	6
27	Carl Crawford	Tampa Bay Rays	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	6
28	J.D. Drew	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
29	Jon Lester	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
30	Jonathan Papelbon	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
31	Robinson Cano	New York Yankees	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
32	Victor Martinez	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
33	Michael Cuddyer	Minnesota Twins	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	4
34	Shin-Soo Choo	Cleveland Indians	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	4
35	Michael Young	Texas Rangers	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	3
36	Jacoby Ellsbury	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	2
37	Jason Kubel	Minnesota Twins	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	2
38	Alex Gonzalez	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1
39	Nick Markakis	Baltimore Orioles	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1

YES! Clearly there were five people who weren't watching the same baseball season as everyone else, but look at that point differential between first and second place. And nobody voted Joe lower than third place, so kudos to all voting parties for that.

Having to vote for ten candidates means this is a pretty large chart with a lot of stragglers, and after Mauer I can't honestly remember who I voted for. I know I voted for one of Cuddyer and Kubel, although I can't promise full homerism by saying I voted for both. Still, I'm positive that Longoria, Cabrera, Zobrist, Jeter and Youkilis were in there somewhere.

The only two AL teams not represented on this list? Oakland and Chicago.

Poll

Who gets your vote for American League MVP?

Joe Mauer

370 votes

370 votes | Poll has closed

Prince Fielder finishes fourth in SBN NL MVP Voting

KLSnow — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:00:38 -0000

The SB Nation Most Valuable Player voting was unveiled today. Here are the NL results:

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Pts
1	Albert Pujols	St. Louis Cardinals	31	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	434
2	Hanley Ramirez	Florida Marlins	-	6	8	11	2	1	2	-	-	-	220
3	Chase Utley	Philadelphia Phillies	-	7	11	2	3	1	-	1	-	1	192
4	Prince Fielder	Milwaukee Brewers	-	5	4	4	7	7	1	-	-	-	186
5	Troy Tulowitzki	Colorado Rockies	-	4	1	5	2	3	3	4	1	2	134
6	Tim Lincecum	San Francisco Giants	-	4	1	-	1	2	2	3	1	-	79
7	Ryan Howard	Philadelphia Phillies	-	4	-	1	4	1	-	-	3	1	79
8	Ryan Zimmerman	Washington Nationals	-	-	1	3	3	3	3	1	-	2	79
9	Adrian Gonzalez	San Diego Padres	-	-	1	-	3	3	2	4	3	4	71
10	Pablo Sandoval	San Francisco Giants	-	-	-	1	2	2	2	3	4	3	57
11	Matt Kemp	Los Angeles Dodgers	-	-	1	1	1	1	5	3	-	1	56
12	Ryan Braun	Milwaukee Brewers	-	-	2	-	-	2	2	1	1	-	39
13	Chris Carpenter	St. Louis Cardinals	-	-	-	-	2	1	1	-	1	2	25
14	Derrek Lee	Chicago Cubs	-	-	-	-	-	2	1	1	3	2	25
15	Andre Ethier	Los Angeles Dodgers	-	-	-	-	1	2	2	-	-	-	24
16	Adam Wainwright	St. Louis Cardinals	-	-	-	1	-	-	1	1	4	1	23
17	Javier Vazquez	Atlanta Braves	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	1	2	1	16
18	Matt Holliday	St. Louis Cardinals	-	-	1	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	12
19	Joey Votto	Cincinnati Reds	-	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	11
20	Mark Reynolds	Arizona Diamondbacks	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	1	2	10
21	Todd Helton	Colorado Rockies	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	7
22	Jayson Werth	Philadelphia Phillies	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	6
23	Adam Dunn	Washington Nationals	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	3	5
24	Juan Pierre	Los Angeles Dodgers	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	4
25	Justin Upton	Arizona Diamondbacks	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	1	4
26	Raul Ibanez	Philadelphia Phillies	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	1	4
27	Ubaldo Jimenez	Colorado Rockies	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	1	4
28	Brian McCann	Atlanta Braves	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	-	4
29	Dan Haren	Arizona Diamondbacks	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	-	4
30	Michael Bourn	Houston Astros	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	3
31	Yadier Molina	St. Louis Cardinals	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	3
32	Nyjer Morgan	Washington Nationals	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1
33	Yunel Escobar	Atlanta Braves	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1

Here was my ballot:
1. Albert Pujols
2. Prince Fielder
3. Tim Lincecum
4. Chase Utley
5. Hanley Ramirez
6. Ryan Zimmerman
7. Troy Tulowitzki
8. Matt Kemp
9. Javier Vazquez
10. Adrian Gonzalez

Follow the jump for the AL results.

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Pts
1	Joe Mauer	Minnesota Twins	24	3	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	371
2	Ben Zobrist	Tampa Bay Rays	-	10	6	2	2	1	-	1	-	-	172
3	Mark Teixeira	New York Yankees	2	3	2	4	3	2	7	1	-	-	158
4	Derek Jeter	New York Yankees	1	5	3	4	4	2	1	1	2	1	157
5	Evan Longoria	Tampa Bay Rays	-	2	4	1	2	3	2	3	2	1	106
6	Zack Greinke	Kansas City Royals	2	3	2	1	1	-	2	-	-	-	92
7	Miguel Cabrera	Detroit Tigers	-	-	3	1	2	4	-	2	-	5	74
8	Kevin Youkilis	Boston Red Sox	-	2	-	-	1	3	1	8	1	-	69
9	Chone Figgins	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	-	3	4	1	-	1	3	1	60
10	Jason Bay	Boston Red Sox	-	1	-	4	2	-	-	1	-	2	54
11	Kendry Morales	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	4	-	-	1	-	-	1	-	39
12	Ichiro Suzuki	Seattle Mariners	-	-	1	-	2	-	1	2	2	3	37
13	Franklin Gutierrez	Seattle Mariners	-	-	-	1	1	1	3	-	1	2	34
14	Justin Verlander	Detroit Tigers	-	-	-	2	1	1	1	-	1	1	32
15	Felix Hernandez	Seattle Mariners	-	-	-	2	-	-	1	3	2	-	31
16	Jason Bartlett	Tampa Bay Rays	-	-	1	1	1	-	-	-	-	1	22
17	Alex Rodriguez	New York Yankees	-	-	1	-	1	-	1	-	-	-	18
18	Roy Halladay	Toronto Blue Jays	-	-	-	1	-	1	1	-	-	-	16
19	Adam Lind	Toronto Blue Jays	-	-	-	-	-	2	-	-	1	4	16
20	Dustin Pedroia	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	4	1	13
21	Bobby Abreu	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	1	1	-	12
22	Aaron Hill	Toronto Blue Jays	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	-	-	12
23	Mariano Rivera	New York Yankees	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	1	1	9
24	Torii Hunter	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	8
25	Brian Roberts	Baltimore Orioles	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	-	-	7
26	CC Sabathia	New York Yankees	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	1	-	6
27	Carl Crawford	Tampa Bay Rays	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	6
28	J.D. Drew	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
29	Jon Lester	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
30	Jonathan Papelbon	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
31	Robinson Cano	New York Yankees	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
32	Victor Martinez	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
33	Michael Cuddyer	Minnesota Twins	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	4
34	Shin-Soo Choo	Cleveland Indians	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	4
35	Michael Young	Texas Rangers	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	3
36	Jacoby Ellsbury	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	2
37	Jason Kubel	Minnesota Twins	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	2
38	Alex Gonzalez	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1
39	Nick Markakis	Baltimore Orioles	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1

2009 SBNation Awards: MVP

Al — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:00:27 -0000

More photos » by Nam Y Huh - AP

Mike Fontenot after a forceout of Albert Pujols in April at Wrigley Field.

Browse more photos »

No surprises here, at least not for me. I expected Albert Pujols to be the unanimous MVP among SBN voters, and he was.

The AL winner is the guy I would have chosen; you may be a bit surprised at the second-place finisher.

Points for MVP are awarded as follows: 14 points for a first-place vote, then 9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 for 2nd through 10th place.

BCB ballots:

Al: 1) Albert Pujols 2) Ryan Howard 3) Prince Fielder 4) Chase Utley 
5) Pablo Sandoval 6) Adrian Gonzalez 7) Hanley Ramirez 
8) Troy Tulowitzki 9) Derrek Lee 10) Adam Dunn

Mike: 1) Albert Pujols 2) Ryan Howard 3) Hanley Ramirez 4) Troy Tulowitzki 
5) Prince Fielder 6) Tim Lincecum 7) Chase Utley 
8) Adam Wainwright 9) Raul Ibanez 10) Mark Reynolds

National League

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Pts
1	Albert Pujols	St. Louis Cardinals	31	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	434
2	Hanley Ramirez	Florida Marlins	-	6	8	11	2	1	2	-	-	-	220
3	Chase Utley	Philadelphia Phillies	-	7	11	2	3	1	-	1	-	1	192
4	Prince Fielder	Milwaukee Brewers	-	5	4	4	7	7	1	-	-	-	186
5	Troy Tulowitzki	Colorado Rockies	-	4	1	5	2	3	3	4	1	2	134
6	Tim Lincecum	San Francisco Giants	-	4	1	-	1	2	2	3	1	-	79
7	Ryan Howard	Philadelphia Phillies	-	4	-	1	4	1	-	-	3	1	79
8	Ryan Zimmerman	Washington Nationals	-	-	1	3	3	3	3	1	-	2	79
9	Adrian Gonzalez	San Diego Padres	-	-	1	-	3	3	2	4	3	4	71
10	Pablo Sandoval	San Francisco Giants	-	-	-	1	2	2	2	3	4	3	57
11	Matt Kemp	Los Angeles Dodgers	-	-	1	1	1	1	5	3	-	1	56
12	Ryan Braun	Milwaukee Brewers	-	-	2	-	-	2	2	1	1	-	39
13	Chris Carpenter	St. Louis Cardinals	-	-	-	-	2	1	1	-	1	2	25
14	Derrek Lee	Chicago Cubs	-	-	-	-	-	2	1	1	3	2	25
15	Andre Ethier	Los Angeles Dodgers	-	-	-	-	1	2	2	-	-	-	24
16	Adam Wainwright	St. Louis Cardinals	-	-	-	1	-	-	1	1	4	1	23
17	Javier Vazquez	Atlanta Braves	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	1	2	1	16
18	Matt Holliday	St. Louis Cardinals	-	-	1	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	12
19	Joey Votto	Cincinnati Reds	-	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	11
20	Mark Reynolds	Arizona Diamondbacks	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	1	2	10
21	Todd Helton	Colorado Rockies	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	7
22	Jayson Werth	Philadelphia Phillies	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	6
23	Adam Dunn	Washington Nationals	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	3	5
24	Juan Pierre	Los Angeles Dodgers	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	4
25	Justin Upton	Arizona Diamondbacks	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	1	4
26	Raul Ibanez	Philadelphia Phillies	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	1	4
27	Ubaldo Jimenez	Colorado Rockies	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	1	4
28	Brian McCann	Atlanta Braves	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	-	4
29	Dan Haren	Arizona Diamondbacks	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	-	4
30	Michael Bourn	Houston Astros	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	3
31	Yadier Molina	St. Louis Cardinals	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	3
32	Nyjer Morgan	Washington Nationals	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1
33	Yunel Escobar	Atlanta Braves	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1

American League

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Pts
1	Joe Mauer	Minnesota Twins	24	3	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	371
2	Ben Zobrist	Tampa Bay Rays	-	10	6	2	2	1	-	1	-	-	172
3	Mark Teixeira	New York Yankees	2	3	2	4	3	2	7	1	-	-	158
4	Derek Jeter	New York Yankees	1	5	3	4	4	2	1	1	2	1	157
5	Evan Longoria	Tampa Bay Rays	-	2	4	1	2	3	2	3	2	1	106
6	Zack Greinke	Kansas City Royals	2	3	2	1	1	-	2	-	-	-	92
7	Miguel Cabrera	Detroit Tigers	-	-	3	1	2	4	-	2	-	5	74
8	Kevin Youkilis	Boston Red Sox	-	2	-	-	1	3	1	8	1	-	69
9	Chone Figgins	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	-	3	4	1	-	1	3	1	60
10	Jason Bay	Boston Red Sox	-	1	-	4	2	-	-	1	-	2	54
11	Kendry Morales	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	4	-	-	1	-	-	1	-	39
12	Ichiro Suzuki	Seattle Mariners	-	-	1	-	2	-	1	2	2	3	37
13	Franklin Gutierrez	Seattle Mariners	-	-	-	1	1	1	3	-	1	2	34
14	Justin Verlander	Detroit Tigers	-	-	-	2	1	1	1	-	1	1	32
15	Felix Hernandez	Seattle Mariners	-	-	-	2	-	-	1	3	2	-	31
16	Jason Bartlett	Tampa Bay Rays	-	-	1	1	1	-	-	-	-	1	22
17	Alex Rodriguez	New York Yankees	-	-	1	-	1	-	1	-	-	-	18
18	Roy Halladay	Toronto Blue Jays	-	-	-	1	-	1	1	-	-	-	16
19	Adam Lind	Toronto Blue Jays	-	-	-	-	-	2	-	-	1	4	16
20	Dustin Pedroia	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	4	1	13
21	Bobby Abreu	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	1	1	-	12
22	Aaron Hill	Toronto Blue Jays	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	-	-	12
23	Mariano Rivera	New York Yankees	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	1	1	9
24	Torii Hunter	Los Angeles Angels	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	8
25	Brian Roberts	Baltimore Orioles	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	-	-	7
26	CC Sabathia	New York Yankees	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	1	-	6
27	Carl Crawford	Tampa Bay Rays	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	6
28	J.D. Drew	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
29	Jon Lester	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
30	Jonathan Papelbon	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
31	Robinson Cano	New York Yankees	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
32	Victor Martinez	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	5
33	Michael Cuddyer	Minnesota Twins	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	4
34	Shin-Soo Choo	Cleveland Indians	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	4
35	Michael Young	Texas Rangers	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	3
36	Jacoby Ellsbury	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	2
37	Jason Kubel	Minnesota Twins	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	-	2
38	Alex Gonzalez	Boston Red Sox	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1
39	Nick Markakis	Baltimore Orioles	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1

Who Would You Rather Have: Alex Rodriguez or Chase Utley?

raygu — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:00:26 -0000

Time for the World Series edition of Who Would You Rather Have? CBS Sportsline recently completed a 5x5 mixed league mock draft, and Chase Utley was selected 4th overall before Ryan Braun, Joe Mauer and Alex Rodriguez to name a few. After Utley went deep twice on Wednesday night do you select him before ARod? Or is ARod still a more valuable fantasy player?

Let's take a look at their 2009 stats:

Name	AB	H	HR	R	RBI	BB	SO	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS
Chase Utley	571	161	31	112	93	88	110	23	0.282	0.397	0.508	0.905
Alex Rodriguez	444	127	30	78	100	80	97	14	0.286	0.402	0.532	0.934

ARod had better overall numbers across the board in less ABs, but Utley is one of the few stud fantasy players at 2B, and there is more depth at 3B than at 2B, right? I am not so sure.

More after the jump:

Here are the third baseman who hit more than 20 HRs in 2009:

Name	HR
Mark Reynolds	44
Ryan Zimmerman	33
Evan Longoria	33
Alex Rodriguez	30
Kevin Youkilis	27
Brandon Inge	27
Pablo Sandoval	25
Mark DeRosa	23
Michael Young	22

And here the second baseman who hit more than 20 HRs in 2009:

Name	HR
Aaron Hill	36
Chase Utley	31
Ian Kinsler	31
Dan Uggla	31
Ben Zobrist	27
Robinson Cano	25
Jose Lopez	25
Clint Barmes	23
Brandon Phillips	20

One could make the case that third base is a scarce postion in 2010, especially if you think that Mark DeRosa is tailing off as a fantasy player and don't think Brandon Inge can hit 27 HRs again. Of course the Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez should hit 30+ HRs should he stay healthy in 2010, but can one count on Chipper Jones or Scott Rolen to hit 20+ HRs again?

Second base is not as scarce as it used to be with Aaron Hill having a breakout (career?) year in 2009, and Ben Zobrist coming out of nowhere to hit 27 HRs in 2009. I won't count on Clint Barmes hitting 20+ HRs again, especially with the AVG that comes with it. Could the Braves Martin Prado sneak into the 20+ HR range with regular playing time in 2010?

So, with all that said, who would you rather have?

Poll

Who would you rather have: Chase Utley or Alex Rodriguez?

ARod-he can hit 40+ in that ballpark

64 votes

Utley-he brings power and more speed.

92 votes

156 votes | Poll has closed