MLB Player Awards 2009

The MLB regular season is over, so it's time to hand out the individual awards for this past year of big league baseball.

MVP

American League: Joe Mauer, MIN. The consensus pick among baseball writers appears to be Joe Mauer and I can't say I disagree. He will lead the AL in batting, OBP and SLG%, a feat that has not been replicated since George Brett's MVP-winning 1980 season. Consider Mauer's excellent defence at catcher and his team's improbable run without Justin Morneau, and he becomes a heavy favourite.
Runners-Up: Mark Teixeira, NYY; Miguel Cabrera, DET
Pre-season rankings: 1. Justin Morneau, MIN; 2. Miguel Cabrera, DET; 3. Mark Teixeira, NYY.

National League: Albert Pujols, STL. As I predicted in April, Pujols will win his third MVP award in five years. Among other categories, he leads the league in home runs, runs scored, OBP, SLG%, and extra base hits. While his most recent attempt at the triple crown will fall short, Pujols will still rank in the top 3 for RBI and batting average. I could go on but no further evidence is necesssary.
Runners-Up: Hanley Ramirez, FLA; Chase Utley, PHI.
Pre-season rankings: 1. Albert Pujols, STL; 2. David Wright, NYM; 3. Manny Ramirez, LAD.

Cy Young

American League: Zach Greinke, KC. Greinke leads the league in ERA (2.06) and sports an incredible strikeout-to-walk ratio (237 K, 49 BB). Moreover, his solid 16-8 record should not be a drawback when no pitcher reached the 20-win plateau. But the real reason Greinke should win this award is that unlike the other candidtates, he dominated all season. Felix Hernandez didn't heat up until June and Roy Halladay swooned briefly in August. C.C. Sabathia also had less than stellar moments. Greinke, on the other hand, started the season with an incredible 40+ inning run and ended it the same way, with barely a bump in between.
Runners-Up: Felix Hernandez, SEA; Roy Halladay, TOR.
Pre-season rankings: 1. Roy Halladay, TOR; 2. Jon Lester, BOS; 3. C.C. Sabathia, NYY.

National League: Chris Carpenter, STL.The NL Cy Young will probably have the tightest voting of all the individual awards this year. But Carpenter's league-leading ERA (2.24), his 81% winning percentage (17-4 record), and his incredible stretch run give him the edge over team-mate Adam Wainwright (19-8, 2.63 ERA) and strikeout machine Tim Lincecum (15-7, 2.48 ERA).
Runners-Up: Adam Wainwright, STL; Tim Lincecum, SF.
Pre-season rankings: 1. Johan Santana, NYM; 2. Brandon Webb, ARI; 3. Tim Lincecum, SF.

In hindsight, my pre-season projections were undone by injuries to David Wright, Johan Santana, Brandon Webb, and Justin Morneau. Man-Ram's suspension was also costly. On the plus side, I did predict that Greinke would be among the AL leaders in both ERA and Ks, although I didn't expect enough wins for him to seriously contend for the Cy Young.