The race for a league’s Most Valuable Player award has always been a subject of great intrigue and debate. Questions are asked, and people constantly wonder whether or not the correct player’s name is engraved on that particular trophy. Over the next few weeks, we will endeavor to answer that inquiry ourselves. Yes, we will go back over the past 12 seasons and decide if hindsight is 20/20 or if the various decision-makers made the right call. We will begin with the 2010 MVP race and work our way up until now. Certainly, the 2010 MVP race had its challengers in both leagues. However, only two can win with the year seeing a generational talent win in one league and a player who some might describe as a “flash in the pan” in the other.
The 2010 MVP Race Re-Examined
American League
We begin our evaluation of the 2010 MVP race in the American League, where things really came down to three players. The Texas Rangers were deep in the throes of Josh Hamilton’s dominance while the Tampa Bay Rays had Evan Longoria at the top of his game. Finally, the New York Yankees put forward Robinson Cano. These were the top three in WAR among all players in the AL that season, but let’s dive in and study their individual campaigns a little deeper.
2010 AL MVP Race Candidates
Robinson Cano
For Cano, the 2010 season was an attempt at proving he could hit for power on a consistent basis. In 2009, he’d set a career-high with 25 homers while hitting .320. 2010 wound up being even more impressive, as he hit .319 with 29 homers, 109 RBI, 200 hits, and 41 doubles. He led all American League second basemen in fWAR. In fact, his season was such that the runner-up in that category finished nearly three full WAR points behind him. Saying that he was the statistical best at his position would be an understatement.
Evan Longoria
A lot of people forget just how good Longoria was in his prime and his 2010 MVP race candidacy proves it. A 7.5 fWAR paced all American League third basemen. Interestingly enough, there were others that beat him pretty soundly in certain categories. Adrian Beltre had a higher average and hit more homers. However, it was the balance Longoria had that put him in the MVP conversation. His 35.0 oWAR and 14.4 dWAR were the most consistent and launched him into the upper echelon at his position.
Josh Hamilton
Josh Hamilton played some of his best baseball in 2010. He led all American League outfielders in fWAR (8.4) & wRC+ (175) while winning the batting title with a .359 mark. To put this in perspective, the next highest average among AL outfielders was Ichiro Suzuki (.315). Not only that, but Hamilton belted 32 homers and drove in 100 runs. He led the league in slugging (.633) and OPS (1.044). He also struck out fewer than 100 times, which is unheard of for a man with his power. His terrific stat line led him to an MVP award…but whether or not he deserved it will be answered momentarily.
The MVP Should Have Been…
Josh Hamilton, by far, was the best the AL had to offer in 2010. His conquering of the league’s 2010 MVP race was the cherry on top of a career that had been nothing but successful. He made his third of five consecutive All-Star Games in 2010 and won his second Silver Slugger. His stat lines go on forever and, coming off a 2009 season in which he only played 89 games, that’s saying something. In this writer’s opinion, Hamilton definitely deserves his 2010 MVP Award.
November 23, 2010: Outfielder Josh Hamilton is named 2010 American League Most Valuable Player. Hamilton receives 22 out of a possible 28 first-place votes to earn his first MVP Award. #StraightUpTX pic.twitter.com/60zBM32w7z
— Texas Rangers Baseball History (@TxRangerHistory) November 23, 2022
National League
Over on the Senior Circuit side of things, we have three very interesting choices. In real life, Joey Votto won the MVP award. Some may say he deserved it, but the WAR numbers speak otherwise. In seeking out the three best in the NL, we find two hurlers: Roy Halladay of the Philadelphia Phillies and Ubaldo Jimenez of the Colorado Rockies. Since there’s no rule that says a pitcher can’t win the MVP award (and indeed, some have), we will be taking them into consideration. The third and final option was future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols. So, let’s dive in and see who should have stood at the top of the podium.
2010 NL MVP Race Candidates
Ubaldo Jimenez
In a somewhat surprising turn of events, Jimenez finds himself thick in the 2010 NL MVP conversation. It’s no small feat, either, as the Colorado ace won 19 games with a 2.88 ERA, 214 strikeouts, and a 161 ERA+. Some might call this a fluke season, as the rest of his career was nowhere near this spectacular. But, for one small moment, Jimenez was near the top of the NL pitching pile. His 7.3 WAR, league-best winning percentage, and doing it all while playing at Coors Field each help land him on this list.
Albert Pujols
Ranking second in the NL in WAR was a name synonymous with the term MVP: Albert Pujols. More to the point, Pujols was the defending MVP. In 2010, Pujols continued to dazzle, slashing .312/.414/.596 with a 1.011 OPS and a league-leading 173 OPS+. His 42 homers, 115 runs scored, and 118 RBI were also the best in the league. The icing on this particular cake was his 103 walks against only 76 strikeouts. The consummate professional hitter, Pujols deserves every bit to be in this conversation.
Roy Halladay
From 2005 to 2012, there was no better pitcher than the man affectionately referred to as “Doc.” Roy Halladay was mound brilliance personified, and his first season with the Phillies was perhaps his best season ever. He won 21 games with a 2.44 ERA and a 219 ERA+. He threw nine complete games, four of which were shutouts. However, it was his ability to control the strike zone that was most impressive. He struck out 219 batters in 250 2/3 innings while only walking 30. That’s a K/BB ratio of 7.30. All of this helped him nab his second career Cy Young Award and his first in the NL. He finished sixth in MVP voting.
The MVP Should Have Been…
Let’s start by saying that Votto and Pujols both had incredible 2010 campaigns. However, Halladay was on another level. Yes, the argument could be made that Halladay only had one turn in a rotation while Votto and Pujols played significantly more. That being said, Halladay is the 2010 NL MVP for one reason: he pitched in a manner that we are not often privy to. It’s not every year that baseball bears witness to a hurler that can have that amount of control over a strike zone. It’s what makes him a Hall of Famer and, in this writer’s view, it’s what should have made him the 2010 NL MVP.
Photo Credit:
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Players Mentioned:
Josh Hamilton, Evan Longoria, Robinson Cano, Adrian Beltre, Ichiro Suzuki, Joey Votto, Roy Halladay, Ubaldo Jimenez, Albert Pujols
