This is another year where the voters picked a Most Valuable Player who wasn't even the most valuable person on his team. The most blatant of these past choices was when Jeff Kent somehow won the MVP over teammate Barry Bonds in 2000. When I came out with my award picks I had two Minnesota Twins in my 3 choices and neither were Justin Morneau. Morneau had monster stats but he wasn't the MVP of his own team nevermind the league.Joe Mauer is hands down more valuable for the Twins than Justin Morneau. First off Mauer batted in the #3 hole the whole season while Morneau consistantly batted in the 5th or 6th spot in the order. Pretty simple that Ron Gardenhire thinks Mauer is a better hitter than Morneau. People who say that you shouldn't take position into account are fools and this is the primary reason why Mauer is much more important than Morneau in the lineup. If you look up and down at Mauer's stats in comparison to every other American league catcher the disparity in total statistics is ridiculous. In addition Mauer is a very good defender at arguably the most important position on the field, helping to lead the Twins pitching staff to a fantastic season. Replace Mauer with an average catcher a Brad Ausmus type and the Twins lose their #3, the best hitter on the team and wind up with a guy who hits around .240 in a good year.
Justin Morneau isn't more valuable to the Twins than Johan Santana either. Without Santana the Twins do not have a remote chance of making the playoffs. Santana is by far the best pitcher in baseball, the Twins were 26-7 in his starts. He won baseballs Triple Crown of pitching. Once again replace Santana with an average and your team is going to go around .500 in those games that's a difference of 9 wins or 18 games in the standings. The notion that a pitcher just because he plays 5 days is also nonsense.
When you compare Morneau to other 1B and DHs around the league his stats stack up against anyone else favorably but they do not overshadow the Big Hurt, Konerko, Thome, Ortiz, etc. quite like Mauer's or Santana's do. Replace him with an average 1B like Kevin Youkalis and the Twins aren't nearly as bad as they would be in the other two scenarios if either were replaced for an average player. Its not as if Morneau is a team leader either as Brad Radke was awarded the team leadership award at the end of the season.
Morneau is a product of finishing the season with great statistics, no one particularly looking at the Twins roster and saying he's the 3rd most valuable player on his own team, and just voting for a player who had a great season for a team that made a second half run to make the playoffs.
Comments
I do think that Santana (and this would also apply to Francisco Liriano when healthy) is the most valuable player on the team. I know that he only plays every fifth day, but starting pitching is the most valuable commodity in baseball, and a true ace is rare. He is the biggest difference between the Twins being a perennial playoff contender and falling back to the pack.
He produces consistently great numbers all year round and holds that team together.
Ortiz would have been it for me if he had continued to belt game winning bombs, but like the rest of the Sox, he kinda faded off.
HOW ABOUT ALBERT FREAKIN PUJOLS!??
Mauer and Santana are the best players in all of baseball in their respective positions. Morneau is not, how could he be more valuable.
It's obviously just numbers game.
This dude at ESPN agrees with me:
http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=2670990&name=law_keith&action=upsell&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fespn%2fblog%2findex%3fentryID%3d2670990%26name%3dlaw_keith
The other consideration of course is that Mauer missed enough games that his #'s had to blow you away for him to win the MVP.