Who will win the AL MVP? UPDATE: Hamilton Wins

UPDATE: HAMILTON WINS

Texas' Josh Hamilton (358 points) was named the American League's MVP today, getting 22 of the 28 first place votes to beat Detroit's Miguel Cabrera (262 points), who got five of the first place votes, and the New York Yankees' Robinson Cano (229 points). Jose Bautista (165 points) got the last first place vote. Congratulations to him, he deserved it.

"Hopefully, an MVP is somebody who excels at their position and at the plate, but most of all, does things consistently right and does whatever he needs to do to help his team win," Hamilton said. "Hopefully, I did that the majority of the season when I was playing."

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Today, the American League's best player will be announced at 2:00 PM. The announcement will end Awards Week, and will also trigger conversation and turn all attention to the off-season.

But know this:

No matter who wins the AL MVP, there will be disagreements.

The front-runners in the race, Texas Rangers' Outfielder and batting champion Josh Hamilton and Yankees' All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano, lead a pack of worthy nominees in Detroit Tigers' fearsome first baseman Miguel Cabrera, Toronto Blue Jays' league home run leader Jose Bautista, and Chicago White Sox captain and first baseman Paul Konerko.

Now, let's meet the candidates:

Josh Hamilton, CF - Texas Rangers
2010 season
Age: 29
Games: 133
Average: .359
Home Runs: 32
Runs Batted In: 100
Hits: 186
On Base Percentage: .411
Slugging Percentage: .633
On Base + Slugging Percentage: 1.044
Gold Glove: No
Did team make playoffs: Yes (90-72, eliminated in World Series)

Robinson Cano, 2B - New York Yankees
2010 season
Age: 27
Games: 160
Average: .319
Home Runs: 29
Runs Batted In: 109
Hits: 200
On Base Percentage: .381
Slugging Percentage: .534
On Base + Slugging Percentage: .914
Gold Glove: Yes
Did team make playoffs: Yes (95-67, eliminated in ALCS)

Miguel Cabrera, First Base - Detroit Tigers
2010 season
Age: 27
Games: 150
Average: .328
Home Runs: 38
Runs Batted In: 126
Hits: 180
On Base Percentage: .420
Slugging Percentage: .622
On Base + Slugging Percentage: 1.042
Gold Glove: No
Did team make playoffs: No (81-81)

Jose Bautista, Right Field - Toronto Blue Jays
2010 season
Age: 30
Games: 161
Average: .260
Home Runs: 54
Runs Batted In: 124
Hits: 148
On Base Percentage: .378
Slugging Percentage: .617
On Base + Slugging Percentage: .995
Gold Glove: No
Did team make playoffs: No (85-77)

Paul Konerko, First Base - Chicago White Sox
2010 season
Age: 34
Games: 149
Average: .312
Home Runs: 39
Runs Batted In: 111
Hits: 171
On Base Percentage: .393
Slugging Percentage: .584
On Base + Slugging Percentage: .977
Gold Glove: No
Did team make playoffs: No (88-74)


The front-runners in this race are obviously Cano and Hamilton. The reason? Both of their teams made the playoffs. Making the postseason is a big part of the MVP voting, and of all the candidates, those two are the only two that made the playoffs. While I wouldn't be surprised if Cabrera could pull off an upset, due to an almost Triple Crown year, I don't expect him to win it. Konerko and Bautista are also just names on the ballot.

Who do I think will win?

Cano.

Go ahead, call me a homer, say "Yankee bias," but I have reasoning. Games played is an extremely valuable part of the voting when discussing the MVP, and Cano had more games played that Hamilton. Sure, Hamilton had an outrageous year, there's no denying that, and it could have been better had he not missed time with injuries, but Cano played in 27 more games than him. Not only did he play more games, but Hamilton also missed most of baseball's most crucial month, September, whereas Cano played in every game and propelled his team down the stretch. Add gold glove defense to Cano's hitting statistics this season, and you've got an MVP-caliber player.

Games played is an important piece, but we've seen it disregarded as recently as last year, when Minnesota Twins' catcher Joe Mauer won the award by hitting .365, even though he missed the first month of the season due to injury.

Knowing the way the writers operate, and seeing how they have treated Yankee players this year in crucial awards (CC Sabathia finishing third in the Cy Young, are you kidding?), Cano probably won't win the award due to analyst's "Yankee Bias," which is b.s. really. They'll say he shouldn't win because his team is loaded with All-Stars and has the highest payroll and that Hamilton should be because the Rangers were a Cinderella story and had a low payroll and that Hamilton has been through so much, blah, blah, blah. Enough. The voters have to vote for who was most valuable to his team this year and stop the bias. Look at the games played.

While I pick Cano, I still think Hamilton will win.

No matter what, if Cano wins, or if Hamilton wins, there will be disagreements. If Cano wins, they'll argue that Hamilton should have, and vice versa. Either way, both players deserve the award.


Go Robbie.