The MLB All-Star break signals the midpoint of the baseball season.
Starting next week the playoff picture will come into view, trade rumors will heat up, and the great teams will begin to separate themselves from the pack.
The first half of the AL season has gone more or less according to plan. The Red Sox and Yankees are using their explosive offenses to maintain the two best records in the league. The only real shock in the standings is the Cleveland Indians' resurrection putting them on top of the AL Central.
The MLB awards races haven't been a total shock either. The biggest stars in the league are the front-runners to win the shiniest trophies, but of course, there are exceptions to those developments.
AL Manager of the Year ? Manny Acta, Cleveland Indians
2011 Team Record (through July 8th): 47-39
2010 Team Record (through July 8th last year): 33-51
Why he'll win: There were just about as many baseball experts who picked the Cleveland Indians to win the AL Central as there were law experts who felt Casey Anthony and Barry Bonds would end up getting convicted. Yet, here we are.
The Indians are solid defensively, have at least three steady starters in their rotation, and they have a bullpen with almost no weak links. Perhaps Acta was lucky to see Asdrubal Cabrera perform at a new level, and what looks like a turn-around season from Travis Hafner, but the recipe for making a manager of the year always involves a cup of luck.
Other contenders: Jim Leyland (DET), Ron Washington (TEX), Mike Scioscia (LAA)
AL DHL Delivery Man Of The Year ? Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees
2011 Stats (through July 8th): 1-1, 1.91 ERA, 21 saves, 4 blown saves
Why he'll win: He does have four blown saves this year, but he's given up two runs in an outing only once this year. The rest of his blown saves were in situations where the Yankees were up by a single run. He's been lights out the rest of the way.
Rivera is now dealing with sore triceps muscle and is skipping the All-Star game, but he isn't expected to miss a lot of time.
Other contenders: Jose Valverde (DET), Chris Perez (CLE), Jonathan Papelbon (BOS)
AL Hank Aaron Award (Best Hitter) ? Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays
2011 Stats (through July 8th): .333 BA, 29 HR, 61 RBI, 1.158 OPS, 6.2 Wins Above Replacement
Why he'll win: I'll admit that I am one of those guys who thinks that the MVP award should go to a team that is in the playoff hunt. How is a player truly valuable if the season goes nowhere? Not everyone agrees with that, but most of them don't work here.
If Toronto was in the hunt, Jose Bautista would be the near-unanimous American League MVP. He leads the planet in WAR, home runs, on-base percentage, and on-base plus slugging. Hammerin' Hank would be proud.
Other contenders: Curtis Granderson (NYY), Adrian Gonzalez (BOS), Miguel Cabrera (DET)
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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See Also:
- Derek Jeter Will Not Appear In This Year's All-Star Game
- The Life And Times Of Derek Jeter
- DEREK JETER GOES DEEP FOR HIT NUMBER 3,000
Mike Fontenot Brett Pill Pat Burrell Jhan Marinez Anibal Sanchez John Baker
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