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Vancouver goes back-to-back! Wins Season 19 World Series!
After a season of parity where the #1 ranking changed hands every edition, with no one holding it twice, the World Series goes to the preseason #1 Vancouver Canadians, as they make it back-to-back titles, and 3 in 5 seasons. Vancouver struggled after being named the #1 team in the league preseason, even falling out of the top 10 at the midseason rankings. But they surged back in the second half, finishing in the top 4 in the last two rankings, and taking that momentum to surge past Boston, Durham and Dover in the playoffs. The key to their run appeared to be strong bullpen work, as most of their relievers pitched very well in the playoffs.
Dover had a great run this season as well, coming out of the NL as the #5 seed, they took out the only two 100 win teams back-to-back to make the World Series, but they just ran out of steam, dropping the last 4 games after going up 2-0.
Now, let's take a look at the Season 19 awards winners.
Most Valuable Player
American League Morgan Cerda, Atlanta - .282 AVG 50 HR 133 RBI 37 SB
Morgan Cerda managed to squeak out another MVP in controversial fashion, as Shawon Stoops and Eugene Brantley had seemingly better numbers, but Cerda takes it an upset win for the second straight year. Not to say Cerda didn't have a great year, he absolutely did, showing that he is a five tool player that will compete for many MVP's in years to come, given that he is only 26.
National League Ray Rudolph, Little Rock - .301 AVG 59 HR 120 RBI
Rudolph was a less controversial winner in the NL, but is only 26 as well, so this may not be his last MVP award either. Rudolph led a Little Rock offense that was dominant all year, and his impressive numbers speak for themselves. He also made the all-star team, won a silver slugger award and was the Home Run Derby champion. Not much else he could have accomplished this season!
Cy Young Award
American League James Haselman, Tampa Bay - 22-7 2.34 ERA
The AL Cy Young Award may be renamed the Haselman Award soon. Haselman won his 4th Cy Young Award and it wasn't even close. He tied all-time great Hall of Famer Carl Sosa for most Cy Youngs in World History, and at only age 31, he seems destined to break the record, and it wouldn't surprise us at all if it were next year.
National League Douglas Banks, Buffalo - 17-5 1.91 ERA
Banks won the Cy Young in a dead heat over Clarence Poole as he took the award by a single vote. Banks was the leader of a Buffalo team that lead the World in wins and by far had the best ERA. It's hard to argue against Banks even though Poole had a great year. Banks is only 25 so he could be great for years to come, if he can avoid the injury bug. He did spend a little time this season on the DL. Hopefully Banks can stay health and we'll see his name back here again soon.
Rookie of the Year
American League Victor Guzman, Burlington -.273 AVG 38 HR 111 RBI 22 SB
Guzman put up tremendous numbers in a park heavily favoring pitchers. There's no telling what his stat line would have been in Durham or Colorado. Guzman looks like he will be a great power hitter for years to come, although as long as he plays in Burlington, future awards may be hard to come by, as he'll have a major park factor obstacle to overcome in putting up the huge numbers that award winners do.
National League Luis Duran, Omaha -.321 AVG 33 HR 83 RBI
Yet another offensive winner who plays in a pitcher's park! Duran's numbers look legit, and he is also an excellent fielder. He does have the park factor going against him, but at just age 21, he does not seem to be done improving, and he could be an award winner for multiple seasons to come. You don't see players like Duran come around too often, he will be a good one.
That concludes Season 19's wrap up, thanks to everyone for a great season, and we would for a quick turnaround into Season 20. Spread the world to your friends, family and acquaintances about Cobbfather, and see if they want to get in on the fun!