End of Season MLB Awards: Handing out MVP, Cy Young, and more
The regular season is officially over, meaning it's time to hand out some hardware.
Ten of theScore's editors submitted their top-five picks in both the American League and National League for the MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, and Manager of the Year awards. The voting system rewards 14 points for first place, nine for second, eight for third, seven for fourth, and six for fifth in order to determine a winner. Major League Baseball will officially announce the award winners beginning the week of Nov. 12.
American League MVP
Winner: Mookie Betts
| Rank | Player | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mookie Betts | BOS | 8 | 2 | 130 | |||
| 2 | Mike Trout | LAA | 1 | 8 | 1 | 93 | ||
| 3 | Jose Ramirez | CLE | 6 | 2 | 2 | 74 | ||
| 4 | J.D. Martinez | BOS | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 64 | |
| 5 | Alex Bregman | HOU | 1 | 1 | 5 | 45 | ||
| 6 | Francisco Lindor | CLE | 2 | 2 | 26 | |||
| 7 | Khris Davis | OAK | 1 | 8 |
After finishing runner-up to Mike Trout in 2016, Mookie Betts should claim his first AL MVP award on the heels of a historic season. Betts established himself as arguably MLB's best all-around player, leading everyone in WAR. The 25-year-old also completed the second 30-30 season in Red Sox history and won his first batting title by leading the majors with a .346 average.
National League MVP
Winner: Christian Yelich
| Rank | Player | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christian Yelich | MIL | 6 | 4 | 120 | |||
| 2 | Jacob deGrom | NYM | 4 | 5 | 1 | 109 | ||
| 3 | Javier Baez | CHC | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 62 | |
| 4 | Freddie Freeman | ATL | 1 | 2 | 4 | 46 | ||
| 5 | Matt Carpenter | STL | 1 | 3 | 2 | 41 | ||
| 6 | Anthony Rendon | WSH | 4 | 28 | ||||
| 7 | Paul Goldschmidt | ARI | 1 | 2 | 20 | |||
| 8 | Max Scherzer | WSH | 1 | 8 |
While he finished just shy of the Senior Circuit's first Triple Crown since 1937, Christian Yelich put together an incredible campaign, helping carry the Brewers to a first-place finish. In his first season with Milwaukee, Yelich won the NL batting title and posted an incredible .367/.449/.770 slash line since the All-Star break.
American League Cy Young
Winner: Blake Snell
| Rank | Player | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blake Snell | TB | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 103 | |
| 2 | Chris Sale | BOS | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 102 | |
| 3 | Justin Verlander | HOU | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 100 | |
| 4 | Gerrit Cole | HOU | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 48 | |
| 5 | Trevor Bauer | CLE | 1 | 4 | 1 | 42 | ||
| 6 | Corey Kluber | CLE | 3 | 2 | 33 | |||
| 7 | Edwin Diaz | SEA | 2 | 12 |
In the award season's tightest race, Blake Snell barely edges out Chris Sale and Justin Verlander for theScore's Cy Young pick. The 25-year-old left-hander led the AL in wins, ERA, ERA+, and H/9, while allowing two or fewer runs in 27 of 31 starts. Sale appeared well on his way to winning his first Cy Young before injuries limited him to just 17 innings over the final two months of the season, disqualifying him from ranking among MLB's ERA leaders.
National League Cy Young
Winner: Jacob deGrom
| Rank | Player | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacob deGrom | NYM | 10 | 140 | ||||
| 2 | Max Scherzer | WSH | 9 | 1 | 89 | |||
| 3 | Aaron Nola | PHI | 1 | 9 | 81 | |||
| 4 | Patrick Corbin | ARI | 6 | 2 | 54 | |||
| 5 | Kyle Freeland | COL | 4 | 1 | 34 | |||
| 6 | Miles Mikolas | STL | 5 | 30 | ||||
| 7 | Clayton Kershaw | LAD | 1 | 1 | 13 |
Jacob deGrom's historic season earned him all 10 first-place votes from theScore's writers. The 30-year-old right-hander threw a career-high 217 innings and led the NL with a 1.70 ERA. His campaign included 24 straight games giving up no more than three runs while pitching at least six innings. However, the Mets' lack of run support for deGrom resulted in just 10 wins for the ace, which would be the fewest ever for a Cy Young-winning starter.
American League Rookie of the Year
Winner: Shohei Ohtani
| Rank | Player | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shohei Ohtani | LAA | 9 | 1 | 135 | |||
| 2 | Miguel Andujar | NYY | 1 | 7 | 2 | 93 | ||
| 3 | Gleyber Torres | NYY | 1 | 5 | 4 | 77 | ||
| 4 | Joey Wendle | TB | 1 | 3 | 6 | 75 | ||
| 5 | Brad Keller | KC | 3 | 18 | ||||
| 6 | Shane Bieber | CLE | 2 | 12 | ||||
| 6 | Ryan Yarbrough | TB | 2 | 12 |
Shohei Ohtani's .564 slugging percentage paced all rookie batters with at least 200 plate appearances. He can also pitch, authoring the best strikeout rate among rookie hurlers in the AL with at least 50 innings on the mound. While his 22 homers may pale in comparison to the 27 Miguel Andujar hit, or even the two dozen that Gleyber Torres collected, his .925 OPS bests both of the Yankees' youngsters. For those who want to penalize Ohtani for playing fewer games, consider the fact that he faced 211 batters and made 367 trips to the plate. Totaled, those 578 plate appearances (for and against) eclipse Torres' 484 and barely trail Andujar's 606 trips to the dish.
National League Rookie of the Year
Winner: Ronald Acuna Jr.
| Rank | Player | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ronald Acuna Jr. | ATL | 8 | 2 | 130 | |||
| 2 | Juan Soto | WSH | 2 | 7 | 1 | 99 | ||
| 3 | Walker Buehler | LAD | 1 | 6 | 2 | 71 | ||
| 4 | Harrison Bader | STL | 1 | 4 | 4 | 60 | ||
| 5 | Jack Flaherty | STL | 2 | 3 | 1 | 43 | ||
| 6 | Brian Anderson | MIA | 3 | 18 | ||||
| 7 | Jeff McNeil | NYM | 1 | 1 | 13 |
Baseball's preseason consensus No. 1 prospect and the favorite to win the NL Rookie of the Year led Senior Circuit rookies in slugging (.552) and stolen bases (16) despite starting the year in the minors. While Juan Soto came out of nowhere to make the race closer than expected, Ronald Acuna Jr. led the Braves to their first division win since the days of Dan Uggla, Andrelton Simmons, and Jason Heyward.
American League Manager of the Year
Winner: Bob Melvin
| Rank | Manager | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Melvin | OAK | 6 | 2 | 2 | 118 | ||
| 2 | Kevin Cash | TB | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 101 | |
| 3 | Alex Cora | BOS | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 88 | |
| 4 | A.J. Hinch | HOU | 1 | 4 | 3 | 54 | ||
| 5 | Aaron Boone | NYY | 3 | 4 | 45 | |||
| 6 | Terry Francona | CLE | 1 | 1 | 2 | 27 |
A's skipper Bob Melvin was entrusted with a team that had finished in the AL West basement for three straight years, competed in the same division as the defending World Series champions, and operated on a shoestring budget. Yet, he led Oakland to 97 wins, transforming the team from an absolute zero into a potential juggernaut. Melvin's management of a starting rotation that includes Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson, and Edwin Jackson played an integral role.
National League Manager of the Year
Winner: Brian Snitker
| Rank | Manager | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brian Snitker | ATL | 10 | 140 | ||||
| 2 | Craig Counsell | MIL | 9 | 1 | 87 | |||
| 3 | Bud Black | COL | 2 | 5 | 1 | 57 | ||
| 4 | Mike Shildt | STL | 3 | 2 | 3 | 56 | ||
| 5 | Dave Roberts | LAD | 3 | 1 | 3 | 49 | ||
| 6 | Joe Maddon | CHC | 1 | 2 | 2 | 34 | ||
| 7 | Gabe Kapler | PHI | 1 | 1 | 15 |
It seems like a distant memory, but the Braves entered the 2018 season in shambles. General manager John Coppolella was banned for life from Major League Baseball after violating international signing rules, and the club forfeited multiple prospects. Brian Snitker, entering his second full campaign at the helm for Atlanta, didn't let any of that negativity trickle into the clubhouse, helping a remarkably young team - led by Acuna, Ozzie Albies, and Dansby Swanson - to a first-place finish.