Cards writer says MVP vote for Cubs' Tepera was meant for Trea Turner
2020 keeps getting weirder.
Chicago Cubs reliever Ryan Tepera officially earned MVP consideration this year after an altogether unremarkable campaign - and from a St. Louis Cardinals writer, no less.
"I'm sure the Tepera family is delighted, but there's no way I would have voted for him. It was an accident," Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch told Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports after putting Tepera 10th on his NL MVP ballot.
"I fully intended to vote for Trea Turner (10th). In fact, I remember wrestling with putting two guys in from a last-place team," added Hummel, alluding to the fact he had Turner's Washington Nationals teammate Juan Soto eighth on his ballot.
Meanwhile, Tepera wasn't bothered by Hummel's error:
One man’s mistake is another man’s claim to an NL MVP vote. Thanks Rick! Honored by the vote. 😂 https://t.co/wsqJpbHpcN
— Ryan Tepera (@RTepera) November 13, 2020
Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman was announced as the winner of the NL MVP award Thursday night. The award is bestowed annually by the Baseball Writers' Association of America and voted upon by 30 writers - two from each of the 15 chapters - who name their top 10 players and rank them accordingly. Hummel was one of two Cardinals representatives.
Though his gaffe didn't affect the ultimate result, Hummel was alarmed to find out he'd selected Tepera, who authored a 3.92 ERA over 21 relief appearances. After retracing his steps, Hummel found Tepera was three spots above Turner in the drop-down menu of eligible players and said he must have clicked the wrong name without double-checking his pick.
"Especially for somebody voting 40 years on this, that would be a stunning development," he said. "People would think I've lost my marbles. Trea Turner should have one more point. He's a good player."
Instead, official records for 2020 NL MVP balloting will continue to have Turner seventh with 83 points total. Tepera, meanwhile, sits tied for 18th with Braves lefty Max Fried, Cubs slugger Ian Happ, Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson, and Milwaukee Brewers reliever Devin Williams, who took home NL Rookie of the Year honors earlier this week.