World Series MVP

[Ben (Rays GM)]

World Series Final Score

Tampa Bay Rays: 4......11 HR, 2 SB, 22 BB, .213 AVG, .630 OPS, 19 XBH, 90.1 IP, 5 SV, 103 K, 4.48 ERA, 3.09 BB/9, 5 QS
Cincinnati Reds: 8......2 HR, 3 SB, 23 BB, .221 AVG, .635 OPS, 18 XBH, 94.1 IP, 1 SV, 93 K, 2.19 ERA, 2.39 BB/9, 9 QS

Yahoo

As you may know, the World Series MVP has only once gone to a player from the losing team. The World Series Most Valuable Player Award is given to the player deemed to have the most impact on his team's performance in the World Series; interpret that how you will and feel free to vote for a player from either team. I'll try to include everyone who I think deserves a chance at winning, so if I leave someone who you wanted to vote for out, I'm sorry but I just didn't think they deserved to be in the conversation - feel free to vote "other" and write-in your vote in the comments. Your 16 choices (8 from each team) are as follows, in order of position:

Reds:

2B Kelly Johnson: 1 HR, 1 SB, 2 BB, .235 AVG, .786 OPS, 2 XBH. Johnson provided one of the Reds' only 2 HRs, but they lost that category. He provided 1 SB and 2 BBs, and the Reds won each of those categories by only 1. His AVG and OPS were unimpressive, but were better than what either team put up as a whole.

OF Shane Victorino: 1 HR, 2 SB, 2 BB, .367 AVG, 1.058 OPS, 5 XBH
Victorino provided the other HR for the Reds (a category they lost), and the other 2 SBs (a category they won 3-2). He provided 2 BBs (a category they won 23-22) and led both teams in XBHs (a category the Reds lost 19-18). Take away his contributions in AVG and OPS, and the Reds lose those categories as well. Without Victorino, the Reds would have lost SBs, BBs, AVG, OPS, and the World Series.

DH Joey Votto: 0 HR, 0 SB, 11 BB, .320 AVG, 1.008 OPS, 4 XBH
Votto provided just under half of the team's 23 BBs. Take away any one of Votto's 11 BBs and the Reds don't win that category. Without Votto's contributions in AVG and OPS, the Reds would have lost those categories as well. Votto's 4 XBHs were only topped by Victorino. Without Votto, the Reds would have lost BBs, AVG, OPS, and the World Series.

SP David Price: 16.0 IP, 0 SV, 17 K, 2.25 ERA, 1.13 BB/9, 2 QS
Price led both teams in innings (a category they barely won) and led the Reds in Ks (a category they lost). His 2 QS were tied with two other pitchers for the team lead. His rate stats were stellar, but were topped by some of the other Reds SPs - in fact, his ERA was higher than the team's overall ERA. Without his contributions, the Reds would have lost IPs and would have had a less dominant lead in BB/9 and QS.

SP Josh Beckett: 11.2 IP, 0 SV, 12 K, 1.54 ERA, 3.86 BB/9, 1 QS
Beckett didn't pitch as much as the other Reds SPs on this list, so his contributions in the counting stats were less impressive, but his ERA was third best among CIN's SPs. Without his contributions, the Reds would have lost IPs and would have had a less dominant lead in ERA and QS.

SP Homer Bailey: 13.0 IP, 0 SV, 16 K, 0.00 ERA, 0.69 BB/9, 1 QS
Nobody contributed more than Bailey did to the team's pitching rate stats, as he led the team in ERA from a SP and was a near second to Cueto in BB/9. His first performance was a no-hitter, but it was followed by a 4 inning performance in which he did not earn a QS. Without his contributions, the Reds would have lost IPs and would have had a less dominant lead in ERA, BB/9, and QS.

SP Anibal Sanchez: 15.1 IP, 0 SV, 14 K, 0.59 ERA, 1.17 BB/9, 2 QS
His ERA was topped only by Bailey among SPs, but he provided two QS to Bailey's one. Only Price pitched more innings for the Reds, and only Bailey and Price struck out more batters. Without his contributions, the Reds would have lost IPs and would have had a less dominant lead in ERA, BB/9, and QS.

SP Johnny Cueto: 14.0 IP, 0 SV, 11 K, 1.93 ERA, 0.64 BB/9
Led the team's SPs in BB/9, tied for the team lead with 2 QS, topped only by Price and Sanchez in IP. His ERA was good as well, but was fourth among SPs. Without his contributions, the Reds would have lost IPs and would have had a less dominant lead in ERA, BB/9, and QS.

Rays:

3B Miguel Cabrera: 2 HR, 0 SB, 2 BB, .306 AVG, .814 OPS, 2 XBH
Cabrera secured the Triple Crown with his performance this week, but was topped by Giancarlo Stanton in every hitting category.

OF Giancarlo Stanton: 3 HR, 0 SB, 4 BB, .409 AVG, 1.364 OPS, 4 XBH
Led both teams in HRs, AVG, and OPS. His 4 XBHs led the Rays in a category they eventually won, and were topped only by Victorino of the Reds. Jeter was the only team mate who walked more than he did.

OF Desmond Jennings: 0 HR, 2 SB, 2 BB, .094 AVG, .303 OPS, 1 XBH
His contributions in the rate stats were negative, but he did provide the Rays' only two steals, which kept pressure on the Reds for most of the week.

SP Zack Greinke: 12.1 IP, 0 SV, 16 K, 3.65 ERA, 2.92 BB/9, 0 QS
Second on the team in both IPs and Ks, contributed in ERA and BB/9 as well.

SP Jordan Zimmermann: 13.0 IP, 0 SV, 12 K, 2.77 ERA, 2.77 BB/9, 2 QS
Led the Rays in IP and QS and was first among qualified Rays starters in ERA. Fourth on the team in Ks.

RP Craig Kimbrel: 4.1 IP, 3 SV, 10 K, 0.00 ERA, 0.00 BB/9, 3 QS
Led the Rays in saves, a category which they won 5-1. His 10 Ks in 4.1 innings gave him the highest strikeout rate of any pitcher on either team.

RP Marco Estrada: 12.0 IP, 14 K, 4.50 ERA, 2.25 BB/9, 1 QS
Third on the team in IP and Ks, led the team's starters in BB/9 and contributed a QS. Slightly detrimental in ERA, however.

P Jonathan Niese: 7.0 IP, 3 K, 1.29 ERA, 3.86 BB/9, 1 QS
Had a lower ERA than any qualified SP on the team, but with only 7 innings did not qualify himself.

[Ben (Rays GM)]

My vote was between Victorino, Votto, and Bailey. Had Bailey had two quality starts instead of one, he'd have been the clear best pitcher on the Reds, but as it was it's hard to separate those four SPs (Price, Bailey, Sanchez, Cueto), as all were fantastic. Bailey's no-hitter was a phenomenal performance, but as for his contributions to the team, there were so many good pitchers that no individual was that important.

Victorino and Votto both had fantastic weeks, and are the only two players about whom it can be said that, without them, the Reds would have lost.

My initial reaction was to vote for Victorino. Subtract Victorino, and the Reds lose four categories. Subtract Votto, and the Reds only lose three categories. In either case they lose, but in Victorino's case, they lose by more, since Victorino also contributed to SBs. However, you have to consider that if you subtract a player he gets replaced by somebody else, and there are a number of players out there that could have provided the exact same thing that Victorino provided - just enough SBs to win, just enough BBs to win, and a solid AVG and OPS. With Votto, that's not the case...

Votto's biggest contribution was to BBs, and it was a huge contribution - Votto walked 11 times, and the Reds won the category by just one walk. Only one other player in all of baseball (Carlos Santana) walked as many times as Votto did during this period, which means that if you replaced Votto with any player besides Santana in the Reds lineup, the Reds would not have won BBs. Santana would not have contributed enough in AVG and OPS for the Reds to win those categories, however - which means, Votto is quite literally the only player in baseball who could occupy the Reds' DH spot that would have resulted in the Reds winning the categories that they did. That's not to say that Votto is the only player who could have won the World Series for the Reds -- replace Votto with Brandon Moss, for example, and the Reds would have still won AVG and OPS. They'd have lost BBs, but they'd have won XBHs, so they'd still have won 8-4. However, saying that Votto is the only player on the planet who could have won the World Series for the Reds in the manner in which they won it is still a pretty impressive statement, and it's the reason that Votto gets my vote.

[Ben (Rays GM)]

Any other MVP votes or discussion?

[Ben (Rays GM)]

4 votes each for Votto and Victorino...