There should be no debate whether American League Triple Crown winner and Detroit Tiger Miguel Cabrera should be awarded the AL MVP, but many voters have publicly said he will not.
Within Major League Baseball’s 143-year-history only 15 players including Cabrera led their respected league in batting average, home runs and RBIs. Only five players have ever won a Major League Triple Crown title leading all of baseball in all three categories which Cabrera almost achieved if it were not for San Francisco Giant and National League MVP nominee Buster Posey batting .336.
According to ESPN.com’s senior baseball writer and MVP voter Tim Kurkjian, if Cabrera wins the Triple Crown title then rookie sensation and Los Angeles Angel Mike Trout should win the League’s MVP. Kurkjian argues Trout’s all-around game is more impressive then Cabrera’s, suggesting Trout’s defensive capabilities and base running awareness should be enough to place him above Cabrera in the MVP race.
What Kurkjian stated was correct. Trout is more capable then Cabrera defensively and possesses more ability to run the bases, however Cabrera crushes Trout in almost every batting statistic. Trout hit 35 home runs, earned 99 RBI and compiled a .306 batting average. Cabrera finished with nine more homers, 40 more RBI and his batting average was 24 points higher.
There’s no question Trout put together a captivating 2012 season compiling statistics that would rival Mickey Mantle but it has been 45 years since the last Triple Crown winner Carl Yastrzemski did it for the Boston Red Sox. Many experts proclaimed the award unachievable with today’s commanding pitching.
Cabrera hit 44 home runs, drove in 139 RBI and produced a .330 batting average. For any hitter to manufacture those types of overwhelming numbers during an era when pitching is dominate throughout baseball is an achievement in itself. For example, the last pitchers to win the award were Justin Verlander and Clayton Kershaw last year.
Most baseball fans are intrigued and excited about power hitters smashing balls over outfi eld walls, but the days of Barry Bonds cracking out 73 homers during a season are over. Between 1998-2006 steroid era, 47,863 home runs left Major League ballparks, which averages to 5,982 per season. Since 2006, only 28,976 homers were driven out averaging to 4,139 per year. That’s why what Cabrera has accomplished is remarkable. He has manhandled pitching staff s throughout the season although pitchers are more
