Justin Verlander won the AL MVP. He's the first starting pitcher since Roger Clemens won the award in 1986. Relievers have also won the award in the past (most recently Eck). Jacoby Ellsbury finished second.
I don't have much of an argument with the results. A pitcher should only win the award when he has a transcendent year, and there is not a position player who stands out. Check and check. I agree with Peter Abraham's ballot. He is a Boston writer who voted for Verlander, followed by Ellsbury.
Abraham writes, "I think in most years, I'd vote for Ellsbury. But Verlander's performance was such that this wasn't most years". I'm fine with that.
Just a guess, but Ellsbury couldn't have been helped by the Red Sox collapse. Ellsbury played his best when everyone around him was at their worst. Whether them making the playoffs would have put him over the top, I don't know. Detroit doesn't make it to the ALCS without Verlander.
Pitchers winning the MVP brings back the 1999 AL MVP Race, which should have been won by Pedro Martinez. I have a clear Boston bias, so let's add in a New York writer's opinion - one where he blasts two colleagues for leaving Martinez off their ballots, costing him the award. This isn't even the worst example of a sportswriter's personal agenda outweighing common sense.
Back to Tennessee - Duke. Tied at 45 with 15:29 left. It's early, but I have seen them a few times, and to me, they don't look like much more than a Sweet 16 team. Wait a minute; that's a pretty foolish statement, since it is November, not March. They have young talent and a great coach, so we'll see where they are at tournament time.
I wonder how many early entrants into the 2011 NBA Draft wish they were still playing for their college team. Here is a list of some difference makers who could still be playing college basketball.
