Millhouse Awards: MLB First Half Awards

Mike Trout photo by Daniel Millhouse

Another season goes by seemingly faster than ever before. It didn't seem that long ago when people just knew the Milwaukee Brewers and the Colorado Rockies were going to be bad and that the Chicago Cubs would be awesome again thanks to the arms of Jon Lester and Jake Arrieta. Then the season began and everything we knew turned upside down.

Mike Trout and Adrian Gonzalez both went down with injuries and in their places, two rookies, Aaron Judge and Cody Bellinger rose and took their respective leagues by storm.

So, I now give to you the Millhouse first half of the season awards for Major League Baseball.

American League:
MVP: Aaron Judge - It should be no surprise that the rookie right fielder for the Yankees has taken the MLB by surprise. He's only a few big hits from leading the MLB in the triple crown categories, runs scored, and even has a bit of unexpected speed to boot. Judge broke the Yankees rookie homerun record set by Joe DiMaggio within the first half of the season. He also just won the homerun derby without breaking a sweat. Judge may give Mike Trout future competition for the American League MVP on a yearly basis.
Cy Young: Chris Sale - This was a close call between Sale and Jason Vargas. The edge goes to Sale because even though he has one less win than Vargas and is second to Vargas' first place hold on ERA, Sale has 100 strikeouts more and a better WHIP as well. The Chicago White Sox better hope that Yoan Moncada and Michael Kopech turn out to be stars or their trade of Sale to the Boston Red Sox might look very one-sided.
Rookie of the Year: Aaron Judge - This also shouldn't be a surprise. There hasn't been a rookie hitter that has made this much of an impact on their team in years.
Fireman of the Year: Brandon Kintzler - This one is a surprise, especially since so many people thought the Minnesota Twins would be a flop this season. Kintzler wasn't even originally thought to be the Twins main closer during Spring Training. Second in the AL in saves, Kintzler has a better ERA and WHIP than the Rays' Alex Colome.
AL All-Star Team: C - Salvador Perez; 1B - Justin Smoak; 2B - Jose Altuve; 3B - Jose Ramirez; SS - Carlos Correa; OF - Aaron Judge, George Springer, Avisail Garcia; DH - Nelson Cruz; SP - Jason Vargas, Chris Sale, Lance McCullers Jr, Corey Kluber, and Ervin Santana; RP - Brandon Kintzler

National League:
MVP: Paul Goldschmidt - He goes out and proves he's the best first baseman in the MLB everyday without a whole lot of fanfare. Goldy is ninth in the league in batting average and homers, but he also leads the league in runs scored, is eighth in stolen bases, and is second in the league for on base percentage. Goldy may not get as much press as Bryce Harper or Kris Bryant, but he has quietly had the most solid season so far in the National League.
Cy Young: Max Scherzer - Some may make the argument that Clayton Kershaw deserves this award, but they'd be wrong. While Kershaw has four more wins than Scherzer, the Nationals ace leads the league in ERA, WHIP, and strikeouts. He's been consistently more dominant than Kershaw has been this season.
Rookie of the Year: Cody Bellinger is the clear runaway for this award. Not even originally supposed to be a starter this season, Bellinger has made the most of his playing time after Adrian Gonzalez went down. What has been even more surprising is the power that Bellinger has shown. There doesn't appear to be another rookie in the National League that could challenge Bellinger for the overall season award.
Fireman of the Year: Greg Holland - Taking a flyer on Holland's comeback, the Rockies have been rewarded with Holland's 28 saves in the first half of the season. This is on top of his 1.62 ERA and a stellar WHIP.
NL All-Star Team: C - Buster Posey; 1B - Paul Goldschmidt; 2B - Daniel Murphy; 3B - Nolan Arenado; SS - Zack Cosart; OF - Bryce Harper, Marcell Ozuna, Charlie Blackmon; SP - Maz Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, Gio Gonzalez, and Robbie Ray; RP - Greg Holland

Millhouse MLB Season Predictions

Photo of Paul Goldschmidt taken by Daniel Millhouse

It's that time of year again. My fantasy baseball draft has passed and I can make my predictions for the season without someone trying to up-bid me during my auction draft. With baseball season so close, I give you my predictions for the 2016 Major League Baseball Season...

American League:
MVP: Manny Machado
Cy Young: Marcus Stroman
Rookie of the Year: AJ Reed
Manager of the Year: AJ Hinch
Fireman of the Year: Wade Davis
Comeback Player of the Year: Marcus Stroman
Breakout: Miguel Sano
Silver Sluggers: Catcher-Salvador Perez, 1B-Chris Davis, 2B-Jose Altuve, 3B-Manny Machado, SS-Carlos Correa, OF-Mookie Betts, Lorenzo Cain, Mike Trout, DH-Nelson Cruz

Notes: While I have listed Stroman as the winner for the Cy Young Award, I can easily see several other pitchers in the running including Garrett Richards who I believe will have a breakout year, Chris Sale, and Dallas Keuchel for a repeat. Also, I believe AJ Reed won't start the year at the Major League level, but Jon Singleton will prove unworthy and Reed won't be in the minors too long.

AL East: 1. Toronto Blue Jays, 2. Baltimore Orioles, 3. New York Yankees, 4. Boston Red Sox, 5. Tampa Bay DEVIL Rays
AL Central: 1. Detroit Tigers, 2. Kansas City Royals, 3. Chicago White Sox, 4. Cleveland Indians, 5. Minnesota Twins
AL West: 1. Houston Astros, 2. Seattle Mariners, 3. Texas Rangers, 4. ANAHEIM Angels, 5. Oakland A's

Notes: With their pitching staff back to healthy, I believe that the Blue Jays will take a step closer to their first World Series appearance since the days of Joe Carter. I also believe that while the Royals will have another good year, the Tigers will stay healthy enough finally to just pull out first place in the Central. The White Sox would be another possible contender, but I don't think they quite pull it out this year. The Astros will repeat in the West and the Mariners will finally show some of the potential some thought they would have last year.

National League:
MVP: Paul Goldschmidt
Cy Young: Johnny Cueto
Rookie of the Year: Trevor Story
Manager of the Year: Dusty Baker
Fireman of the Year: AJ Ramos
Comeback Player of the Year: Jose Fernandez
Breakout Player of the Year: Aaron Nola
Silver Sluggers: Catcher-Buster Posey, 1B-Paul Goldschmidt, 2B-Dee Gordon, 3B-Nolan Arenado, SS-Brandon Crawford, OF-Bryce Harper, Giancarlo Stanton, Andrew McCutcheon, Pitcher-Madison Bumgarner

Notes: I believe that now that he is in a pitcher's park and has a stellar defense behind him, Cueto will finally step up beyond the role of all-star pitcher and into the role of Cy Young Award winner just past Clayton Kershaw. While I imagine 99% of people are predicting that Corey Seager will be the rookie of the year and I agree he will probably have a good year as well, I believe Story will take advantage of taking the shortstop spot from Jose Reyes. Story won't let go and will benefit from playing in Colorado. Domingo Santana will also be another player to watch for Rookie of the Year, especially if he earns the leadoff spot for the Brewers. I believe that Jose Fernandez will be the best comeback story, but Anthony Rendon and Adam Wainwright won't be far behind. Lastly, Aaron Nola will show that he deserves to be called an ace despite being on a horrible team. He won't rack up the wins, but he will have a low ERA and WHIP along with some quality starts.

NL East: 1. New York Mets, 2. Washington Nationals, 3. Miami Marlins, 4. Atlanta Braves, 5. Philadelphia Phillies
NL Central: 1. Chicago Cubs, 2. Pittsburgh Pirates, 3. St. Louis Cardinals, 4. Milwaukee Brewers, 5. Cincinnati Reds
NL West: 1. San Francisco Giants, 3. Arizona Diamondbacks, 3. Los Angeles Dodgers, 4. San Diego Padres, 5. Colorado Rockies

Notes: The focus has been on some of the signings and trades Arizona made this offseason. While good, this is an even year which seems to be lucky for the Giants. The Diamondbacks have a better rotation that is built for the postseason though. The Cubs also come into this season with a lot of hype, but is also helps that they have two horrible teams within their own division (Reds, Brewers). The Mets will also benefit from having two horrible teams in their division, but at least the Braves have potential with all the minor league stars they traded for the past couple of years. We could potentially see the Braves step up next year like the Astros did in 2015.

Playoffs:
AL: Wildcards-Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals; AL Championship-Toronto Blue Jays vs. Houston Astros; AL Champion-Houston Astros
NL: Wildcards-Arizona Diamondbacks and the Pittsburgh Pirates; NL Championship-San Francisco Giants vs. New York Mets; NL Champions-San Francisco Giants
World Series: Houston Astros over San Francisco in 7 games

2015 Millhouse MLB Midseason Awards

2015 Millhouse MLB Midseason Awards

American League:
MVP: Mike Trout- It's hard to deny how good he is. He hits for power, he steals bases, he's a strong defender, and he won back-to-back MVP awards for the All-Star game.

Cy Young: Dallas Keuchel- He's finally developed into the pitcher the Astros thought he could be. He is the AL leader in ERA, one of the leaders in wins, and has led the Astros into a surprising first half performance that has impressed the rest of the MLB.

Rookie of the Year: Billy Burns- (although if Carlos Correa keeps producing at the rate he has, I believe he'll take it for the year). Burns doesn't have the power, but he can steal, he hits over .300, and has been a sparkplug for the A's.

Silver Sluggers: Catcher-Stephen Vogt, 1B- Miguel Cabrera, 2B- Jason Kipnis, 3B- Manny Machado, SS- Jose Iglesias, OF- Mike Trout, OF- Lorenzo Cain, OF- J.D. Martinez, DH- Nelson Cruz

Comeback Player of the Year: Prince Fielder- After neck surgery and a lot of doubts about his returning to full strength, Fielder came back and would be the best first baseman in the American League if it weren't for Miggy.

National League:
MVP: Paul Goldschmidt- In an very close vote, Goldschmidt just edges out Bryce Harper for this spot because of his stolen bases.

Cy Young: Zack Greinke- In the midst of the fourth longest scoreless innings streak since 1961, Greinke currently holds this spot, but could possibly lose it to Max Scherzer if Greinke doesn't produce as well in the second half.

Rookie of the Year: Tied- Joc Pederson and Kris Bryant- In many circumstances, Pederson would be the clear winner, but a batting average that hovers around .230 makes it hard to say he has a clear win over the much anticipated rookie season of Kris Bryant.

Silver Sluggers: Catcher- Buster Posey, 1B- Paul Goldschmidt, 2B- Dee Gordon, 3B- Todd Frazier, SS- Troy Tulowitzki, OF- Bryce Harper, OF- Charlie Blackmon, OF- AJ Pollock, Pitcher- Madison Bumgarner

Comeback Player of the Year: Joey Votto- after hitting only 6 homers and having a severe decline in his average, Votto has nearly tripled his homer total from last season and is once again hitting with a good batting average.