Yadier Molina is a finalist for the NL MVP Award. Others are Buster Posey (frontrunner?), Ryan Braun (last year's winner), Chase Headley and Andrew McCutchen. The winner will be announced next Thursday, Nov. 15.

Kyle Lohse was not a Cy Young Award finalist, but neither was Johnny Cueto. The NL finalists are R.A. Dickey, Clayton Kershaw and Gio Gonzalez.

I think Posey should win, but I'm glad to see Yadi as a finalist.  Very well deserved.

I think buster wins the MVP and Dickey wins the cy

I'd give it to Braun

if we can turn this into the awards thread I think this year is pretty easy to call:

nlmvp-posey(no doubt)
nlcya-dickey(no doubt)

almvp(super no doubt)


al cya gets hairy to me....I think it should be price simply bc he has the lowest era with high so combo...but then you throw in the fact that verlander went to the postseason...BUT verlander wont cya and mvp last year and of course that isnt sexy to some people....

i say this one is a coin flip, but id take price to win

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--- 619illinibooyah wrote:

I'd give it to Braun

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Based on his stats, he certainly deserves MVP consideration, but Braun has absolutely zero chance of winning it. Many of last year's voters felt duped after Braun's ensuing PED scandal. It's just too fresh on their minds. I guarantee you that Yadi will finish ahead of Braun in the voting.....and it probably won't even be close. Posey is the leading candidate and most likely will prevail, but Yadi has a shot at it.

Yeah, nice to be nominated but Posey has the better offensive stats and isn't a slouch defensively either. When did they start this finalist thing? This is the first time I've noticed it but I don't guess I paid great attention last year.

cardfan16SLU wrote: Yeah, nice to be nominated but Posey has the better offensive stats and isn't a slouch defensively either. When did they start this finalist thing? This is the first time I've noticed it but I don't guess I paid great attention last year.

I believe it is new this year. Personally, I don't have a problem with them wanting to spread out the publicity a bit more, but I think they went too far when they created a television program - not to announce the winners, but just to disclose the finalists.

The NBA/NFL-ization of baseball continues...

619illinibooyah wrote: I'd give it to Braun

I wouldn't give it to a cheater.

grayssportsalmanac wrote:

almvp(super no doubt)

Super no doubt as to who it will be, or who it should be?

I've said it once, I'll say it again. Mike Trout should get the AL MVP no one has put up a WAR as high as his since Barry Bonds' (PED aided) 11.9 in 2004. Trout led the league in SB and OPS+ all while saving tons of runs at a premium defensive position. Miggy has the sexier HR, RBI and BA numbers but Trout won more games for his team. 

All of that being true, there is no doubt who will win it.

TCRedbird wrote:

619illinibooyah wrote: I'd give it to Braun

I wouldn't give it to a cheater.

I wouldn't either. Which is why I'm giving it to Braun.

619illinibooyah wrote:

TCRedbird wrote:

619illinibooyah wrote: I'd give it to Braun

I wouldn't give it to a cheater.

I wouldn't either. Which is why I'm giving it to Braun.

Braun is a cheater, he got caught doing it.

JimJim15 wrote:

grayssportsalmanac wrote:

almvp(super no doubt)

Super no doubt as to who it will be, or who it should be?

both...cabrera come on...

Unless a player puts up ginormous numbers, I think the MVP recipient must have helped lead his team into the playoffs to be considered. Braun accomplished neither. What really would have made the NL MVP interesting would have been if Posey's Giants had fell short of post season action. If that had occurred, I think Yadi would have pulled it off.

stlcards5129 wrote: I've said it once, I'll say it again. Mike Trout should get the AL MVP no one has put up a WAR as high as his since Barry Bonds' (PED aided) 11.9 in 2004. Trout led the league in SB and OPS+ all while saving tons of runs at a premium defensive position. Miggy has the sexier HR, RBI and BA numbers but Trout won more games for his team. 

All of that being true, there is no doubt who will win it.

Agreed.  In full.

pugsleyaddams wrote: Unless a player puts up ginormous numbers, I think the MVP recipient must have helped lead his team into the playoffs to be considered. Braun accomplished neither. What really would have made the NL MVP interesting would have been if Posey's Giants had fell short of post season action. If that had occurred, I think Yadi would have pulled it off.

Fair enough, but it is an individual award. I don't see why anyone should take any team accomplishments into consideration when voting for an individual award.

stlcards5129 wrote:

pugsleyaddams wrote: Unless a player puts up ginormous numbers, I think the MVP recipient must have helped lead his team into the playoffs to be considered. Braun accomplished neither. What really would have made the NL MVP interesting would have been if Posey's Giants had fell short of post season action. If that had occurred, I think Yadi would have pulled it off.

Fair enough, but it is an individual award. I don't see why anyone should take any team accomplishments into consideration when voting for an individual award.

Historically, the MVP award has had a team aspect to it. One of the more-or-less unwritten components of the MVP is that it does not matter how valuable you are if your team did not win.

It often depended on the season and competition. In the old days there was also a "Player of the Year" award, that was strictly individual. Sometimes the same guy won both, but sometimes the MVP came from a pennant winner and the POY was a guy that had a monster year on an non-pennant winning team.

I'm not even sure the POY is still given. I think it used to be a Sporting News award.

Historically, the award goes to whoever the writers want it to go to.  I still haven't forgiven them for giving the 1987 NL MVP to Andre Dawson of the last-place Cubs over Ozzie Smith of the NL champion Cardinals.