The Kevin
Mitchell Most Valuable Batter Award has gone to Arkansas's Barry Bonds
in two out of the last three years -- and after setting a new all-time
record in on-base percentage this year, he could become the first
three-time winner or the first guy to win it in back-to-back seasons.
In addition to his new OBP mark (.538) -- breaking the record of .522
he set in 2003 -- Bonds led the league in OPS (1.306), runs created
(213.4), RC/27 (18.8), SLG (.768), walks (167), intentional walks (38),
isolated power (.399), total average (1.823), secondary average (.775),
TB+BB (536) and AB/HR (9.1). He also finished 2nd in batting average
(.369), home runs (51), runs (152) and 4th in RBIs (141).
But Barry will get some competition
this year, as he wasn't the only
player to set league records in 2005. (Remember, for league record
purposes, the "modern" era began in 1997, when the league switched to
Diamond Mind Baseball and grew to 14 teams; all-time records stretch
for the entire history of the league, dating back to 1991.)
Phoenix fans didn't have much to root
for this season, except for hitter extraordinaire Ichiro
Suzuki. The slap-hitting speed demon set a new DMBL record with a
33-game hitting streak, beating by one game the mark held since 1997 by
Jim Eisenreich. Ichiro broke another record set by Eisenreich that
season, the modern-era mark for most hits with 268. (The all-time
record of 295 hits, by Deion Sanders in 1993, still stands.) This
season, Ichiro was 4th in batting average (.359), tied for 5th in
stolen base percentage (.720) and tied for 7th in stolen bases (18); he
also posted a .389 OBP, .824 OPS, 27 2B, 6 3B and 114 R.
Newark's all-world offense took them
all the way to their
second-straight World Series title, so it's no surprise the Sugar Bears
have a whole lineup of Mitchell candidates -- including four of the top
five guys in OPS! But let's forget about Hideki
Matsui (.322, .948 OPS, 23 HR, 101 R, 126 RBI), J.T.
Snow (.363, 1.005 OPS, 53 2B, 124 R, 107 RBI), Jim Thome (.316, 1.051 OPS, 41 HR, 112 R,
148 RBI), Gregg Zaun (.353, .975 OPS, 11 HR,
78 RBI) and even league RBI-leader Manny Ramirez
(.282, .937 OPS, 48 HR, 131 R, 161 RBI), and focus only on the
two Sugar Bears who set all-time DMBL records this season: Bobby Abreu and  Carlos Guillen. Guillen set a new league record
with an incredible .398 batting average, shattering the old record of
.384 set in 1993 by Deion Sanders. Abreu set
new all-time records in runs scored (184), breaking the old mark of 163
shared by Chuck Knoblauch (1997) and Barry Bonds (2002); and in stolen
base percentage (29-1, .967), erasing the old all-time record of .941
(32-2) set in 2000 by Matt Lawton. This year, Abreu was 2nd in OBP
(.463), walks (135) and runs created (188.9); 3rd in hits (230), stolen
bases (29), total average (1.230) and RC/27 (11.7); 4th in OPS (1.017);
tied for 4th in doubles (52); 5th in batting average (.350) and total
bases (364); and tied for the league's second-longest hitting streak
(26 games). Guillen, meanwhile, ranked 2nd in OPS (1.151), SLG (.690),
total average (1.314) and RC/27 (13.5); 4th in OBP (.461). Perhaps most
impressively, Guillen -- a shortstop -- led all non-1B/DH/OF in runs
created (148.8), OPS, OBP and SLG!
Las Vegas's Carl
Crawford set a new modern record in triples (23), breaking the
record of 20 set by Juan Uribe in 2002. (The old record of 62 triples,
set by Deion Sanders in 1993, will no doubt stand forever.) Crawford
also led the league in stolen bases (50). But he probably won't get
many votes because the only other category in which he was in the top
10 was steal percentage (.746); he hit .277 with a .311 OBP, .415 SLG,
7 HR and 94 R... The old modern-era triples record actually was tied by
Columbia's Ben Broussard and Chone Figgins. Figgins hit .261 with a .718 OPS
(28 2B, 88 R, 67 RBI), but Broussard might get some MVB love: He hit
.319 with a respectable .408 OBP, .549 SLG (.957 OPS) with 29 2B, 20
HR, 98 R and 75 RBI.
Hillsborough's Adam
Dunn
set a modern-era record he doesn't want to talk about -- most
strikeouts in a season (244), breaking the record of 232 set in 1999 by
Mark McGwire. (The all-time record of 357 Ks, by Rob Deer in 1993,
still stands.) Despite all the Ks, though, Dunn does deserve some
serious consideration for at least a nod from the Mitch voters: He led
the league in home runs (55), total bases (398) and extra base hits
(98), and was 2nd in RBIs (150), AB/HR (11.7) and isolated power
(.328); 3rd in TB+BB (488); 4th in SLG (.618), runs created (155.7) and
secondary average (.472); and tied for 6th in OPS (.994). He also hit
.290 with 40 2B, 121 R and 90 BB.
Players who didn't set records but
still deserve MVB consideration: Carolina's Travis
Hafner (.339, 1.152 OPS, 30 HR, 94 R, 73 RBI, 28 IBB); Philly's
one-two punch of J.D. Drew (.322, .994 OPS, 34
HR, 126 R, 98 RBI) and Albert Pujols (.309,
.969 OPS, 45
2B, 39 HR, 112 R, 127 RBI); Tijuana's Vlad Guerrero
(.315, .921 OPS, 45 2B, 36 HR, 115 R, 120 RBI); and Vancouver's Victor Martinez (.295, .890 OPS, 42 2B, 36 HR,
131 RBI).
There weren't any pitching records
set this season, and the competition for the Ben
McDonald Most Valuable Pitcher Award appears to be wide open.
But that doesn't mean there's a shortage of candidates. In fact,
several starting pitchers have numbers that would make them locks for
the award in any other season. And there's always a chance that the
award could go, for the first time in league history, to a closer -- or
maybe even, dare we say it, a middle reliever? Let's take a look at the
leading contenders and let the voters decide.
Philadelphia had the league's best
pitching staff, and some say the league's best pitcher in Johan Santana. The lefty led the league in R/9
(9.8), OPS (.626), RC/27 (3.4), Component ERA (2.66) and WHIP (1.06)
and tied for the league lead in quality starts (23). He finished 2nd in
ERA (3.02), quality start percentage (.697) and H/9 (7.2).  He
was 4th in strikeouts (243) and K/9 (10.1); tied for 4th in K:BB ratio
(4.4); tied for 5th in wins (17); was 8th in winning percentage (.708);
and 9th in innings (217.1). Santana may have some competition from
within as veteran Brad Radke had his best
season since '98 (17-7, 2.82 ERA) -- when the only pitcher better was
teammate Greg Maddux, who won the McDonald! Perhaps history will repeat
itself as Radke had another outstanding season as a "wing man," leading
the league in shutouts (5) and BB/9 (1.3) and finishing 4th in wins
(18), ERA (3.55) and R/9 (10.7); he also tied for 1st in complete games
(8) and was 3rd in innings (231.0); 3rd in RC/27 (3.8) and K:BB (4.6);
tied for 3rd in OPS (.677); 4th in WHIP (1.15) and Component ERA
(3.33); and 9th in winning percentage (.692).
But while Philly had the Dynamic Duo
in Santana and Radke, Arkansas had the Terrific Trio in Roger Clemens, Pedro Martinez
and Curt
Schilling. That rotation plus Barry Bonds is a formula for success
the Falcs have been riding for years, and it worked again this year,
taking them all the way to a fourth-straight World Series appearance.
It's tough to say which of the three had the best season; Clemens led
the league in wins (21) and innings (235.1), was 2nd in winning
percentage (.808) and 3rd in ERA (3.29), but not in the top 10 in R/9
(12.2) due to his mediocre 3.3 BB/9, 2.7 K:BB ratio. Martinez was tied
for 9th in ERA (3.86), but finished 2nd in wins (20), strikeouts (255),
innings (233.1) and tied for 2nd -- with six other pitchers -- in
shutouts (2). He also finished 4th in winning percentage (.741); 5th in
K/9 (9.8); 6th in K:BB (4.3); and 7th in R/9 (12.0). Schilling, who
went 17-6 with a 3.77 ERA, led the team in R/9 (11.3), Component ERA
(3.66), quality start percentage (.613) and WHIP (1.24).
 After
a season to forget last year (0-2, 21 H, 13 ER in 4.2 IP), many thought
the 42-year-old Randy Johnson had waited one
season too long before hanging up his spikes. But this year, the Big
Unit not only proved his doubters wrong, but had a bona-fide
McDonald-caliber season. Johnson led the league in strikeouts (265) and
strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.0); tied for 1st in quality starts (23); was
2nd in K/9 (10.6) and tied for 2nd in shutouts (2); was 3rd in wins
(19), R/9 (10.6), quality start percentage (.676), WHIP (1.14) and
Component ERA (3.12).
Honolulu rode the arm of Jason Schmidt all the way to the second round of
the post-season, and though he didn't get a ring, he might just get a
Big Ben. Schmidt led the league in ERA, squeaking past Santana (3.018
to 3.023), and also was 1st in batting average (.197), H/9 (6.6) and
QS% (.710). Schmidt was 2nd in R/9 (10.2), OPS (.644), RC/27 (3.5) and
Component ERA (2.97); tied for 5th in Ks (236); 6th in innings (220.2);
tied for 6th in K/9 (9.6); 7th in W% (.727); and tied for 8th in wins
(16). Teammate Roy Oswalt (15-11, 3.91 ERA,
12.7
R/9) had a solid season.
After a two-year hiatus, the Iron
Fist rode their young guns back into the post-season and will likely
stay there for years to come. But while 26-year-old Juan
Cruz, 29-year-old Bobby Madritsch,
24-year-old Ryan Madson, 24-year-old Jake Peavy and 26-year-old Ben
Sheets had
their share of growing pains, it was 23-year-old lefty Oliver Perez who pitched like a veteran, leading
the team in almost everything. Perez led the league in K/9 (11.5) and
was 3rd in strikeouts (249) and winning percentage (.762); tied for 6h
in quality start percentage (.613); tied for 8th in wins (16); tied for
9th in ERA (3.86), R/9 (12.1) and K:BB (3.0); and 10th in Component ERA
(3.94).
 Orlando Hernandez was brutal with Las Vegas
(9-7, 5.08 ERA, 14.2
R/9, .400 QS%), but brilliant with Stanhope (7-2, 3.03 ERA, 11.3 R/9,
.750 QS%); as expected, his overall numbers were in the middle (16-9,
4.25 ERA, 13.0 R/9, .531 QS%). But his pitching down the stretch helped
Stanhope reach the post-season, and it will be interesting to see what
the voters think of his Jekyll and Hyde performance.
Other starting pitchers of note:
Columbia's Roy Halladay (12-9, 4.09 ERA, 13.4
R/9); Columbia's Mark Buehrle (13-14, 4.21
ERA, 11.9
R/9); Hoboken's Jaret Wright (12-9, 4.50 ERA,
13.9 R/9); Las Vegas's Freddy Garcia (12-11,
3.75
ERA, 12.1 R/9); and Tijuana's Dontrelle Willis
(10-8, 4.62, 14.1 R/9).
Thinking of voting for a reliever?
Well, no one's ever won it, not even Dennis
Eckersley when he posted a 1.13 ERA in 64 games in 1991, nor John Smoltz when he set the all-time DMBL record
for saves (45) in 2003.
But if the voters want to make
history, they have a few options this season. Hoboken's Jason Isringhausen won the Dennis Eckersley Rolaids Relief Man of the Year
Award by leading the league in  relief
points (72); he tied for the league lead in saves (33) and was tied for
4th in save percentage (.846) and tied for 5th in relief wins (8), with
a 2.39 ERA, 8.9 R/9, 8.1 K/9 and .250 IR%. Vancouver's Billy Wagner (2.81 ERA, 8.8 R/9, 10.2 K/9, .214
IR%) tied with Izzy in saves and save percentage, but finished third in
relief points (65) as he had four less wins. Between them in the
standings was Arkansas's Brad Lidge (3.47 ERA,
10.4 R/9, 14.1 K/9, .194 IR%), who had 31 saves and 6 wins, but was 6th
with a .838 SV%.
Rounding out the top five were Columbia's Joe
Nathan (3-6, 32 SV, 2.43 ERA, 11.3 R/9, 11.1 K/9, .133 IR%), who
led the league with an .865 SV%; and Philly's Armando
Benitez (6-7, 30 SV, 2.03 ERA, 10.0 R/9, 7.2 K/9, .368 IR%).
Want to vote for someone who isn't
starting or closing? Consider Carolina's Matt
Miller (6-5, 0 SV,
17 holds, 3.05 ERA, 11.1 R/9, 8.9 K/9, .289 IR%); Honolulu's Steve
Kline (4-1, 3 SV, 16 holds, 2.66 ERA, 10.1 R/9, 5.9 K/9, .333 IR%);
Newark's Mike Gonzalez (4-4, 11 SV, 16 holds,
3.08 ERA, 10.6 R/9, 11.9 K/9, .396 IR%); Philly's Francisco
Rodriguez (5-4, 2 SV, 17 holds, 2.63 ERA, 10.2 R/9, 11.8 K/9, .271
IR%) or Stanhope's Yhency Brazoban (2-2, 2 SV,
18 holds, 2.69 ERA, 12.9 R/9, 7.3 K/9, .275 IR%).
The leading candidates for the
coveted Pat Listach Rookie of the Year Award were
discussed in a recent edition of Rookie Watch, but let's briefly run down the
leading contenders.
Vancouver Victor Martinez
led rookie batters in almost every offensive category -- and he's a
switch-hitting catcher!  Taken
in the 9th round (#120) of last year's draft as an ineligible prospect,
Martinez hit .295 (.890 OPS) with 42 doubles, 36 homers and 131 runs
batted in. He led not only all rookies, but all catchers, in runs
created (119.4), slugging percentage (.537), doubles, homers and RBIs.
He also played in every game but one this season... Tijuana's Lew Ford hit .301 and scored 112 runs -- both
tops among rookies -- and had a respectable .809 OPS, 99.0 runs created
and 72 RBIs... Columbia's Chone Figgins hit
just .261 (.718 OPS), but socked 20 triples, most among rookies -- and
would have tied the modern record, if Carl Crawford
hadn't broken the record this year with 23... Several rookies had
ridiculous numbers in part-time duty, most notably Arkansas's David Newhan (.370, .916 OPS in 238 AB) and
Vancouver's Ross Gload (.382, .976 OPS in 241
AB).
Looking at the freshman starting
pitchers, the leading candidate might be another Iron Fist -- Bobby Madritsch. The 29-year-old lefty had plenty
of ups and downs this season, but was probably the best of the rookie
starters (14-10, 4.27 ERA, 13.2 R/9, .500 QS%). Among all pitchers,
Madritsch tied for the league lead in complete games (8), was second in
fewest HR/9 (0.6) and tied for second in shutouts (2)... But if winning
is the bottom line, there was one rookie who outshone everybody -- in
fact, he led the whole league in winning percentage. Newark's David Bush went 17-4 (.810 W%), thanks mostly to
Newark's generous run support (7.5 rpg), as his other numbers weren't
quite as lofty (5.40 ERA, 14.7 R/9, .438 QS%)... Philly's Zack Greinke proved he has great control (12.0
R/9, 4.4 K:BB), but the 21-year-old phenom was sent back down to the
minors after going 9-11 with a 5.30 ERA, mostly because of his 1.9 HR/9
and 5.9 K/9... The only other rookies who got more than a handful of
starts were Hillsborough's Erik Bedard (5-15,
7.62, 18.5) and Cliff Lee (3-13, 8.57, 18.3)
and Phoenix's Noah Lowry (12-16, 5.28, 13.6)
and Jose Contreras (7-13, 6.29, 15.7).
Three of the middle relievers
discussed in the McDonald section are rookies -- Carolina's Matt Miller (6-5, 0 SV,
17 holds, 3.05 ERA, 11.1 R/9, 8.9 K/9, .289 IR%); Las Vegas/Newark's Mike Gonzalez (4-4, 11 SV, 16 holds,
3.08 ERA, 10.6 R/9, 11.9 K/9, .396 IR%) and  Stanhope's
Yhency Brazoban (2-2, 2 SV,
18 holds, 2.69 ERA, 12.9 R/9, 7.3 K/9, .275 IR%)... Two Japanese
imports had solid DMBL debuts, Newark's Akinori
Otsuka (4-4, 8 SV, 3.76 ERA, 12.2 R/9, 10.7 K/9, .349 IR%) and
Hoboken/Arkansas's Shingo Takatsu (5-3 3 SV,
3.32 ERA, 12.0 R/9, 6.3 K/9, .378 IR%)... Philly's Kiko
Calero lived up to the hype of being the 20th pick in this year's
draft, allowing a 9.6 R/9 and 10.2 K/9, with a 4.06 ERA, 3 W, 4 SV, 12
holds and a .222 IR%.
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