Everybody knows about the significance and honor that comes with winning Major League Baseball’s most recognized individual award, the Most Valuable Player. However, very few people are aware of the Most Important Players awards, handed out by yours truly starting right now.
Look, the MVP award is great and all, but can it compare to being named your team’s Most Important Player by none other than myself? I’m sure any player would be happy to take that over the MVP any day.
Before we begin, let’s just make one thing clear: the MIP isn’t necessarily going to a team’s best player. In some cases it will, but in most cases it does not. The MIP is intended to be given to the player whose contributions will be most important to his team based on his recent performance and what most might project from him. So while Mike Trout is unquestionably the Angels (and MLB’s) MVP, he might not be the Angels’ MIP for purposes of this series.
Without further delay, let’s take a look at the MIPs in the AL East for 2015.
Boston Red Sox: 2B, Dustin Pedroia
Interestingly enough, the first MIP recipient is a former MVP winner himself; but this version of Dustin Pedroia is a fraction of his 2008 self. Without getting too deep into Pedroia’s 2008 statistics vs. his 2014 statistics, take a look at his slash lines from each year:
2008 AVG/OBP/SLG/OPS: .326/.376./.493/.869
2014 AVG/OBP/SLG/OPS: .278/.337/.376/.712
Yikes. What the heck happened to Pedroia? The answer to that question is irrelevant moving forward, however that decline is exactly why Pedroia is the Red Sox MIP award winner. If the Red Sox are going to compete for, and potentially win, the AL East in 2015, they’ll need Pedroia to put up numbers that bear more of a resemblance to his ’08 level of production than his ’14 numbers. Even with the additions of Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez to the Red Sox lineup, Pedroia will be counted upon to set the table for the big hitters behind him. So congratulations, Dustin, your recent decline has at least won you the LWOS MIP award for your team.
Tampa Bay Rays: SP, Alex Cobb
I almost went with Chris Archer in this spot, but I think Cobb makes more sense. Cobb is likely going to be the Rays opening day starter in 2015, and rightfully so. His team leading FIP of 3.23, ERA+ of 130 and K/9 of 8.1 suggest that Cobb is the best option the Rays have in their David Price-less rotation. At 27 years young, Cobb should be just entering the prime of his career. While it’s probably safe to say the Rays won’t be competing for a playoff spot in 2015, Cobb could assert himself as the Rays’ ace of the future. That would go a long ways in giving this team confidence that they can still compete in the near future in the AL East.
Considering that the Rays offense outside of Evan Longoria looks pretty putrid for 2015, the team’s hopes for the upcoming season essentially rest entirely on the arms of the rotation and bullpen. While they don’t appear to have enough pitching talent this season to make any major splashes, Cobb’s emergence is the Rays best hope for exceeding expectations this season.
Toronto Blue Jays: SP, Marcus Stroman
The Blue Jays are the complete opposite of the Rays: a team loaded on offense with an underwhelming crop of pitchers. At this point, R.A. Dickey and Mark Buehrle are what they are. Drew Hutchinson and Marco Estrada don’t really inspire much confidence, either. That’s where Marcus Stroman comes in, however. Stroman is the lone pitcher in the Blue Jays’ rotation who is on the rise and therefore will be an integral part of their success (or lack thereof) in 2015.
What’s encouraging for the Blue Jays and Stroman entering 2015 is how Stroman closed out the 2014 campaign. Take a look at his numbers from the second half of the season:
ERA: 3.38, WHIP: 1.112, K/BB: 64/15, BAA: .242
All of those numbers were substantial improvements over his first half numbers, an encouraging sign heading into a 2015 season in which the Blue Jays will likely be leaning on him to be their ace.
New York Yankees: C, Brian McCann
McCann’s 2014 probably wasn’t what the Yankees paid for. Then again, that could be said for almost every player on their roster. The good news is there is hope for McCann! That much can’t be said for fellow overpaid sluggers Alex Rodriguez and Mark Texeira. McCann hit 23 home runs in 2014, which doesn’t sound all that bad until you consider most projected him for at least 30 at the start of last season given that his swing is seemingly made for Yankee Stadium’s ridiculously short RF porch. Worse yet, McCann slashed a measly .232/.282/.406 last season. While his increased K% and decreased BB% are both causes for concern, there are signs he’ll bounce back in 2015. Most notable of those signs was his unfortunate BABIP last season of .231, 52 points below his career average. Assuming that number rises a decent amount back toward the mean, the Yankees should be able to count on a whole lot more out of their prized catcher in 2015.
Baltimore Orioles: 3B, Manny Machado
The departures of Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis have left a lot of questions surrounding the Orioles’ lineup, and Chris Davis’ horrific 2014 season has only added fuel to the fire. But those issues and questions could all be hushed if Manny Machado is able to a) stay healthy, b) return to his 2013 form, and c) hold onto his bat. After another brutal knee injury, Machado missed a lot of time in 2014. Still just 22 years old, however, Machado has all the talent and potential to be the franchise player that the O’s need him to be. Additionally, Machado improved his K/BB rate (albeit barely) and upped his OPS+ in his shortened 2014 campaign. A big step forward in 2015 would not only cease concerns about his health and maturity, but it would also go a long way toward helping the Orioles stay atop the AL East.
Well, there you have it everyone, the Most Important Players of the AL East for 2015. Stay tuned for the MIPs of the NL East in the near future.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @GregGoose15 . Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport and @LWOSworld – and “liking” our Facebook page.
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