By Benjamin Custer
Texarkana Gazette (Published October 2011)
Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander regularly pounced on opponents this season, winning more than 80 percent of his starts en route to a pitching Triple Crown. He earned his stripes as the most valuable hurler in the league, but to recognize him as the most valuable player would be a travesty.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not diminishing Verlander’s performance in any way, shape or form.
The righty should win the American League Cy Young Award by unanimous vote. He made batters look about as spectacular as LeBron James in the fourth quarter of last year’s NBA Finals.
My reasons against Verlander snagging the MVP Award have nothing to do with his numbers and everything to do with equality. As long as there’s no batting equivalent to the pitchers’ Cy Young Award, the MVP in each league should be reserved for a position player—period.
Major League Baseball introduced the MVP in 1931. For the first 25 years of the award’s existence, the selection system was fairer than anyone named by the magical mirror in “Snow White.” In each league, position players and pitchers alike had equal opportunity to vie for the most prestigious individual prize in baseball.
The inequity of the situation emerged with the introduction of the Cy Young Award in 1956. Since then, nine pitchers have won the MVP and Cy Young Award in the same season, according to MLB archives.
As long as there’s no batting-specific award, the only time players should take home both pieces of hardware is when they’re like Babe Ruth and excel at pitching and hitting. The way the game has changed, I don’t foresee that happening anytime soon.
Some argue pitchers technically aren’t “players,” and by definition shouldn’t be eligible for the MVP. I won’t go that far, but position players should not go hungry while pitchers have their cake and eat it, too.
MLB established the Ted Williams Award in 1997, which was reserved for the most productive hitter in each league. However, for various reasons, baseball discontinued it after just five years and renamed the All-Star MVP Award the Ted Williams MVP Award.
That decision makes as much sense to me as Manny Ramirez taking a female fertility drug. In one form or another, baseball needs to reinstate the original Ted Williams Award. Only then will the MVP playing field be evened.
Until then, I don’t care if Verlander posts a 34-0 record with 400 strikeouts and a 0.00 ERA. Give him the Cy Young Award, but save the MVP for a position player.