A Good Article Regarding The A.L. MVP...

BRONX BIAS STRIKES JETER

By Mike Vaccaro
November 22, 2006

MAYBE it's best that Derek Jeter get a preview of what's in store for him across the next 15 years. Maybe it's best that we get it on the record, from a sizable cross-section of the nation's baseball writers, exactly what his perception really is, what his national image really is.

This time, it was an MVP Award, one that he deserved, one that should have his name on it, one that was taken from him primarily because of the team he plays for and the city he plays in. The voters will tell you differently, but know this: If Derek Jeter had the season he had playing for the Minnesota Twins, and if Justin Morneau had the season he had playing for the Yankees, it would be Jeter who would be reserving space on his shelf for the MVP plaque.

But Jeter doesn't play for the Twins. He plays for the Yankees. He plays in New York City. He makes a lot of commercials, and he dates a lot of starlets, and he makes a lot of money, and if you think that doesn't count in the minds of the people who cast these votes, you're a greater believer in the purity of human nature than I am.

And here's the thing: This is only the warm-up. Just wait another 15 years or so, when it's time for the same assemblage of writers to size up Jeter's credentials as a Hall of Famer. Just wait, especially, when the arbiters of immortality decide whether Jeter's career merits the honor of a first-ballot selection, or whether they'll force him to endure a few years of consolation phone calls first.

Jeter has long been a source of endless speculation and endless fascination in the ongoing debate between we in New York who see him every day and the larger audience of Yankee-weary skeptics who've been convinced from day one that Jeter is solely a product of the New York hype machine.

Look, Morneau is more than a worthy candidate. Jeter may have outhit him by 23 points and had the better on-base percentage by 42 points, but the Twin had 20 more homers and 33 more RBIs, and his .559 slugging percentage dwarfed Jeter's .483. It isn't an outrage that Morneau won.

But this poll certainly is a commentary about the way Jeter lost. One voter, a shameless Chicago shill named Joe Cowley, actually listed Jeter sixth and then spent yesterday double-talking his explanation to anyone who would listen. Cowley didn't cost Jeter the MVP. No one voter robbed Jeter the way Ted Williams was robbed in 1947, when some long-forgotten Midwestern bum kept Williams off his ballot entirely and Williams wound up losing the vote to Joe DiMaggio by a single point.

Was Jeter hurt by the fact that, as an "intangibles" player and as a captain, that he failed to publicly support Alex Rodriguez during his most embattled year? It would be a shame if he were, but that's certainly possible. Was he hurt by the fact that, as an "intangibles" player, he was steamrolled by voters who always favor gaudy numbers? That's certainly possible, too.

What's hard to dispute is this: the overwhelming perception of the Yankees is that they are not a team that needs an "intangibles" guy, even if their lack of recent championships is a direct tie to a growing dearth of intangibles guys.

Alex Rodriguez won the MVP last year in what became a controversial duel with David Ortiz, but the truth is Rodriguez had MVP-level numbers that allowed voters to assuage their inherent anti-Yankee bents.

He was the best player having the best year. In the end, that mattered most.

Jeter didn't have those numbers. He'll never have those numbers. And it's not likely he's ever again going to have a year like this one when his singular presence in the Yankee lineup - during a year when the Yankees made the '06 football Giants look strong and robust and healthy by comparison - is what kept them from a freefall while half the batting order nursed injuries.

He should have won. He didn't. Now save your breath and wait, because in 15 years or so, you'll be hearing exactly the same arguments from exactly the same precincts. It's best to get used to it early. For Jeter and for his army of fans.

And The MVP Goes To...

Justin Morneau.

JUSTIN MORNEAU?!?!?!

You have got to be kidding me. Justin Morneau is not even the most valuable player on his own team. That distinction belongs to Johan Santana and Joe Mauer.

This is absolutely disgusting. The anti-New York sentiment is getting completely ridiculous and out of control. When Ichiro won the Rookie of the Year after leaving Japan, no one said a word, and rightfully so- He absolutely deserved it. But when Hideki Matsui came over from Japan two seasons later and put up EASILY the best season of any MLB rookie, suddenly the writers decided that he wasn't "technically" a rookie because he'd played professional ball in Japan. HELLO, AND ICHIRO DIDN'T?!?! And Robbie Cano was robbed of the ROY last season as well, because the writers chose YET ANOTHER member of the Oakland A's to firmly solidify the rampant West Coast bias that exists in Major League Baseball.

2005:

Huston Street (Oakland Athletics) over Robinson Cano (New York Yankees)- Rookie of the Year (1st and 2nd Finishers)

Bartolo Colon (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) over Mariano Rivera (NYY)- Cy Young (1st and 2nd Place)

2004:

Vladimir Guerrero (Anaheim Angels) over Gary Sheffield (NYY)- MVP (1st and 2nd Place)
2003:

Angel Berroa (Kansas City Royals) (HAHAHA!) over Hideki Matsui (NYY)- R.O.Y. (1st and 2nd Place)

{STILL UNBELIEVABLE, 3 YEARS LATER}

And just to further my point- Since 1996 (11 Award Seasons), you know how many players from the A.L. West won MVP Awards? 9. NINE! Disgusting. A-Rod (as a Yankee) and Morneau are the only ones not on the West Coast.
****************

Derek Sanderson Jeter, to say you were robbed would be an understatement.

Snubbed!

Mussina one of many All-Star snubs on our list

Michael Lazarus / Special to FOXSports.com

As hard as it may be to fathom that a New York Yankee who's a five-time All-Star can be underrated, it's apparent that Mike Mussina has turned the trick -- at least when it comes to this year's All-Star selection process.

If there's one player who should feel completely snubbed, it's Mussina, the second-ranked pitcher in our rankings this week and a mainstay for most of the season.

Ranked among the top 14 pitchers in baseball in all six of our categories (including wins and ERA), Mussina wasn't only left off the original roster – he wasn't even one of the five players added for the ballot for the final spot.

Granted some pitchers – like Mark Redman, Scott Kazmir and Barry Zito – are their teams' only representative so it's understandable why they were selected. But compare the raw numbers of Mussina and another All-Star pitcher. (Stats through Tuesday night's games):

Mike Mussina: 9-3, 3.17 ERA, 116.1 IP, 104 SO, 22 BB, 1.04 WHIP

Mark Buehrle: 9-5, 3.86 ERA, 116.2 IP, 51 SO, 28 BB, 1.31 WHIP

Of course, Buehrle plays for the same team as the AL All-Star manager. Perhaps this is payback for all the Yankees who made the game when Joe Torre managed (remember Mike Stanton in 2001)?

• The six statistics the rankings are based on:
  

ERA: The most common statistic to rate pitchers.
WHIP: Keeping batters from reaching base is of utmost importance.
Strikeouts/walk ratio: A big measuring stick for success.
Strikeouts/9 innings: Pitchers who strike out more batters tend to do better.
Opponents' slugging percentage: Limiting the home runs and extra-base hits.
Wins: Yes, wins aren't always "earned" but this is what the ultimate goal is

The 30 top pitchers in each category earn points (30 for first, 29 for second, and so on all the way down to 1 point for 30th place). Those with the most total points top our rankings.

Pitchers must have thrown enough innings to qualify for the ERA title (one inning per team games played) in every category except wins. Ties among wins are broken by number of losses. Rankings are through Tuesday night.


Rk Pitcher ERA WHIP K/BB K/9 SLG% Wins TOTAL
1. Johan Santana 28 30 29 27 21 14.5 149.5
2. Mike Mussina 20 28 26 19 22 17 132
3. Roy Halladay 23 27 25 NR 18 29.5 122.5
4. Pedro Martinez 9 29 23 30 27 NR 118
5. Curt Schilling 6 24 30 20 NR 27.5 107.5
6. Brandon Webb 29 20 28 NR 13 17 107
7. Jason Schmidt 30 23 NR 13 29 NR 95
8.Jeremy Bonderman 5 15 19 25 25 NR 89
9. Bronson Arroyo 27 21 14 1 14 11.5 88.5
10. Chris Young 21 26 1 21 19 NR 88

Next 10:
11. Jose Contreras (86)
12. Brad Penny (84)
13. Scott Kazmir (80.5)
14. John Lackey (79)
15. Justin Verlander (77.5)
16. Chris Carpenter (76)
17. Chris Capuano (74.5)
18. Jake Peavy (68)
19. Carlos Zambrano (6)
20. Aaron Harang (61.5).

Dropped out: Kenny Rogers (LW: 18).

*** Liriano is 2/3 of an inning away from taking over the No. 1 spot ***

Just to Pass the Time...

This is an argument I had (and won) in a conversation about Derek Jeter on a message board.


Anonymous Comment: Chacon, Wang, Small, and A Rod. Those four men carried the team. Bernie Williams didn't do sh!t for the team this year. Look at Jeter's strikeout numbers? He was second on the league in strikeouts with 117. Like I've stated before, he's all defense and no offense. Most overrated player in all of baseball.


My response: "OK...To state that any one Yankee carried the team in 2005 is foolish. In one of the most consistently inconsistent seasons I can ever remember, you can point to every single Yankee as having carried the team at one point (just like you can blame just about every Yankee for contributing to losing in the first round of the playoffs). The Yanks might never have gotten above .500 without Tino's torrid homerun streak in May, Moose's two CG shutouts started two of the longest and most significant winning streaks the team went on, guys like Felix Escalona, Bubba Crosby, and Tony Womack all had walk-off, game-winning hits, and really, if we had to pick *just one* player who carried the team it UNDOUBTEDLY would be Mariano Rivera! But baseball is a team sport and this season was certainly a team effort.


As for Bernie Williams, Anonymous, Do you happen to know which New York Yankee had the best average with runners in scoring position and two outs? Not A-Rod (not even close, actually), not Sheff or Matsui or Jeter or Giambi...None other than Bernie Williams himself. Did you watch any games in '05? Because if you did you'd remember his game-winning grand slam in Seattle, his game-winning hit versus the Mets at Shea, the go-ahead triple vs. the D'Rays that topped a 13-run 8th inning, his walk-off homer at the Stadium in September, and all the other big, clutch hits that Bernie has been able to come up with his whole career. Now, of course he's not the player he once was...He's a mere shadow of that player, but he's still a big-time hitter and in all honesty, there aren't too many guys on the team I'd rather see up in a big spot than Bernie.


Finally, to say that Derek Jeter is just a defensive player is insulting and foolish. If he were a Rey Ordonez or Omar Vizquel-type guy, I'd agree with you. But a guy who hits over .300 (.309 if I'm not mistaken...) with *202* hits, over 120 runs scored, 19 homeruns and 70 RBIs for a LEADOFF HITTER is pretty damn good! But according to your logic his strikeouts cancel all these numbers out, huh? Add a second consecutive gold-glove to that on top of a .314 lifetime batting average, 4 World Series rings (and one WS MVP award) and you tell me how many other major leaguers can compare to that in terms of all-around consistency, talent and performance. Guess what? You can't!

Think before you speak, people!"

Ignorant people drive me crazy. Remember, this was all informal and off the top of my head so I think I might be wrong about Jeter's lifetime average, but I'm too lazy to look it up right now. Had that argument a while ago but there's nothing going on right now and I thought I'd give you something to read about if you are in fact checking the site. And if you are, thanks so much for reading! Why not leave me a comment, though? I really do enjoy feedback and would appreciate it ever so much!


*Lara Marie