2011 MVP Winner..Justin Verlander Image via Wikipedia
Much to my dismay (click HERE to read why) , I obviously still extend my sincerest of CONGRATULATIONS to Detroit Tiger ace, and
recent CY Young receipt Justin Verlander for being named the 2011 Most-Valuable-Player.
There was no question that Verlander was the best pitcher across baseball this past season. Verlander finished the regular season 24-5 in 34 starts. He also boosted a 2.40 ERA, had four complete games and two shutouts during the 251 innings he pitched. Verlander gave up 67 earned runs, 24 home-runs, and 57 walks but managed to strike out a whooping out 250 batters of the 969 he faced. That explains why Verlander held opposing hitters to a .192 average and 283 total bases.
Not since Oakland Athletics Dennis Eckersley was named 1992 MVP has baseball given its most coveted award to a pitcher. Eckersley was just the 23rd pitcher in baseball history to win the MVP; and now after a 19 year drought, Verlander becomes #24.
The New York Yankees were represented with five players making the MVP final voting list:
AMERICAN LEAGUE MOST VALUABLE PLAYER VOTING TOTALS
| Player | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th | Points |
| Justin Verlander | Tigers | 13 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 280 | |||
| Jacoby Ellsbury | Red Sox | 4 | 13 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 242 | |||
| Jose Bautista | Blue Jays | 5 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 231 | |
| Curtis Granderson | Yankees | 3 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 215 | |||
| Miguel Cabrera | Tigers | 2 | 9 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 193 | |||
| Robinson Cano | Yankees | 2 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 112 | ||
| Adrian Gonzalez | Red Sox | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 105 | ||
| Michael Young | Rangers | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 96 |
| Dustin Pedroia | Red Sox | 4 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 48 | ||||||
| Evan Longoria | Rays | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 27 | ||||||
| Ian Kinsler | Rangers | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 25 | |||||
| Alex Avila | Tigers | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 13 | ||||||
| Paul Konerko | White Sox | 5 | 1 | 11 | ||||||||
| CC Sabathia | Yankees | 2 | 10 | |||||||||
| Adrian Beltre | Rangers | 2 | 1 | 1 | 9 | |||||||
| Ben Zobrist | Rays | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||||||||
| Victor Martinez | Tigers | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | |||||||
| James Shields | Rays | 1 | 5 | 7 | ||||||||
| Mark Teixeira | Yankees | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||||||||
| Asdrubal Cabrera | Indians | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||||||||
| Alex Gordon | Royals | 3 | 3 | |||||||||
| Josh Hamilton | Rangers | 1 | 1 | |||||||||
| David Robertson | Yankees | 1 | 1 |
(Voting results compliments of MLB.com)
Congratulations to all the MVP finalists, as your ceaseless efforts and continual hard work is utterly awe-inspiring.
Related articles
- New York Yankees: MVP To Granderson, Honorable Mention To Verlander (ladylovespinstripes.com)
- Justin Verlander commits rare feat; Wins both Cy Young & AL MVP (yankeesfansunite.wordpress.com)
- Verlander Wins AL MVP, 1st Starter In 25 Years (newyork.cbslocal.com)
- Justin Verlander Named American League MVP (tracking.si.com)
- Hartnett: AL MVP Voters Get It Right, Choosing Justin Verlander (newyork.cbslocal.com)
- Grandy, Cano place behind MVP Verlander (mlb.mlb.com)
- Justin Verlander: 2011 American League MVP… or at Least He Should Be (bleacherreport.com)
- Verlander Wins AL MVP (slidingintohome.blogspot.com)
- Bats: Can Jose Bautista Sneak Away With the M.V.P.? (bats.blogs.nytimes.com)
"and 57 walks but managed to strike out a whooping out 250 batters of the 969 he faced".
If you want to be viewed as a serious journalist, then please proof read what you write.
From a Yankee point of view I guess I can give David Robertson a nod because he was the best reliever in baseball (even Mo) in 2011. But seriously, Tex????. I'm having a hard time containing myself. Seriously???