Juan for the books
Soto delivers MVP fantasy season
There are no more ice-cold superstars to bench for a redhot previously unknown career minor leaguer. There are no red-hot veterans to pick up and or prospects to scout.
By day’s end, not only will a champion be crowned, but your league will have the name of a loser who needs to be punished. Before we call it a season, though, it’s time to award the players who helped you achieve fantasy glory, as well as those who made waiting in line for hours for a COVID nasal swab seem pleasant.
Roto Rage Jarad Wilk will hand out the NL awards, and Fantasy Alarm’s Howard Bender will dole out the honors (and dishonors) for the AL:
MVP NL: Juan Soto, Nationals
— Entered the weekend leading the league in walk percentage and on-base percentage, and was sixth in runs (second in the NL) and second in average. He also had the 11th-lowest strikeout rate in the majors (fourth in the NL). What set him apart from Bryce Harper (outside of the strikeout total) and Fernando Tatis Jr. (outside of games played and strikeout total) were his second-half numbers (.360, 18 HR, 52 RBIs, 63 R, 4 SB, 82/35 BB/K, 1.195 OPS). He came through over and over again when it mattered most, while playing on a lousy team. That is worthy of an MVP title.
AL: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays — It was a close battle between him and Shohei Ohtani, but after two years of struggles and finding his way in the majors, Guerrero was an absolute stud, slashing .313/.402/.596 with 46 home runs, 107 RBIs, 120 runs scored and even four stolen bases. What was most impressive was that he went hitless in consecutive games just 12 times all year.
LVP
NL: Christian Yelich, Brewers — This could have easily gone to Francisco Lindor or Cody Bellinger (or even Yu Darvish), but the 2018 MVP takes the (booby) prize here because of another disappointing season after being drafted as a top-12 player.
AL: Gleyber Torres, Yankees — Getting hurt in May and August likely saved fantasy owners from having to play him. His power vanished, his plate discipline was ugly and, for where Torres was drafted in most leagues, his overall value was trash.
CY YOUNG
NL: Max Scherzer, Dodgers — After going 8-4 with a 2.76 ERA, 11.9 strikeouts per nine and .182 opponents average in 19 starts for Washington, he went 7-0 with a 1.98 ERA, .189 opponents average, 89 strikeouts and just eight walks over 68 ¹/3 innings in 11 starts with Los Angeles.
AL: Robbie Ray, Blue Jays — Ray steals the award from Gerrit Cole with an outstanding season and, most notably, a strong second half. Normally just a strikeout guy with mediocre ratios, Ray posted a 3.13 ERA with 130 strikeouts over 100 2/3 innings in the first half then went into shutdown mode after the AllStar break, posting a 2.53 ERA with another 118 strikeouts over 92 2/3 innings. And if you have a comment on the win total, just know that 13 wins was the thirdhighest in the AL.
ANTI CY YOUNG
NL: Patrick Corbin, Nationals — Not only did he suffer the most losses in the majors (16), but also he had the worst ERA (5.82) after allowing the most earned runs (111). He also had the worst opponents average (.286), allowed the second-most homers (37) and had the sixthworst walks per nine rate (3.15).
AL: Dallas Keuchel, White Sox — Though he had moments when he looked as if he could be a competent fantasy asset, Keuchel was just not a guy you want in your fantasy rotations. The 5.13 ERA and 1.53 WHIP tear apart your ratios, and his 5.24 K/9 was the lowest among qualified pitchers, so he isn’t even giving you strikeouts. His removal from your fantasy team was actually addition by
subtraction.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
NL: Jonathan India, Reds — India entered Friday leading all rookies in games pay , oubles. He ranked fourth in OPS and third in OBP to go along with double-digit steals, 20-plus homers and almost 70 RBIs. This was a no-brainer.
AL: Randy Arozarena, Rays — Most forget he still qualifies as a rookie. His 23 games played last year was almost half a season, but with just 76 plate appearances under his belt, his rookie status ported over to 2021. A .273 average with 20 home runs and 16 stolen bases gives him a slight edge over Adolis Garcia.
BREAKOUT STAR
NL: Austin Riley, Braves — Entered the weekend ranked sixth in hits, eighth in RBIs, 10th in average, 20th in OBP, 15th in slugging percentage and 13th in OPS. If it weren’t for his 25 percent strikeout rate and the fact he offers nothing in terms of stolen bases, he likely would have been the NL MVP because of how he outperformed his 217.8 ADP.
AL: Cedric Mullins, Orioles — The Orioles outfielder could have also been our Bargain Bin hitter as well, based on where he was drafted, but we’ll call this magnificent 30-30 season, the first in Orioles history, the breakout campaign of the season.
COMEBACK PLAYER
NL: Adam Wainwright, Cardinals — Wainwright was nowhere near being thought of as a rotation mainstay, even after posting a 3.15 ERA and 1.05 WHIP in the abbreviated 2020 season. The 40-year-old had his best season since finishing third in Cy Young voting in 2014. Joey Votto was the runner-up. AL: Shohei Ohtani, Angels — He had Tommy John surgery in 2018, didn’t throw a single pitch in 2019 and only threw 12/3 innings last season, which left him with a 37.80 ERA. This year, not only did he club 45 homers and steal 26 bases, but also he made 23 starts and posted a 3.18 ERA with 156 strikeouts over 130 ¹/3 innings, becoming the best two-way player since Babe Ruth.