The biggest debate in Major League Baseball right now centers around who will win the American League Most Valuable Player. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim outfielder Mike Trout and Detroit Tigers 3rd baseman Miguel Cabrera have both had unbelievable seasons. But Cabrera should receive the award.
Trout put up a 30-home-run, 30-stolen-base season, showing how he contributes to the game in many ways.
Trout wreaks havoc on the base paths, stealing bases, stretching singles into doubles.
Getting into scoring position for the hitters behind him is how he can contribute to more runs per game.
Trout’s amazing speed allows him to cover a huge range in the outfield. He put up a .988 fielding percentage, committing only four errors and was known for executing highlight reel catches.
The sabermetric statistic WAR (wins above replacement) evaluates every aspect of the game and puts all of those statistics into one number that shows how many wins a player has contributed to his team, compared to his backup.
Trout is leading the league with a WAR of 10.7, Cabrera’s WAR is 6.9. But WAR isn’t everything and Cabrera is still fourth in the league in WAR.
Despite Trout’s value to his team, it is not enough to overcome Cabrera’s accomplishments.
Cabrera won the triple crown, leading the AL in average, home runs and runs batted in, a feat that hasn’t been accomplished since 1967 by Carl Yastrzemski.
The triple crown is not just a great honor, it shows Cabrera is the best hitter in baseball today.
His combination of average and power is unheard of in today’s game. Cabrera produces more runs than anyone else in the league, because of his ability to drive in runs and hit monstrous homers.
Plus, the Detroit Tigers won the AL Championship Series, while Trout’s Angels didn’t make the postseason.
The Angels had 89 wins while the Tigers had 88, but Detroit seized the opportunity and are now in the World Series. The MVP in my opinion should be on a playoff team however.
Cabrera is the best all-around hitter in baseball and therefore should be the AL MVP.
Source: baseball-reference.com