Alright, I'm gonna jump into these awards with the Reliever of the Year. Historically (all of two years), I've started with Comeback Player of the Year.
This year though, not a whole lot to go on. If it means anything, Jay Gibbons. And he had all of 80 plate appearances this season, so, there you go.
...and provided Jeter-esque Gold Glove defense in left.
On the other hand, whatever the opposite of Comeback Player of the Year is, there were a handful of candidates for that.
Anyway, let's talk Reliever of the Year.
It's Hong-Chih Kuo.
Yeah, I'm not screwing around.
Well, I mean, I started this blog post with the intent of naming a bunch of candidates and their qualifications but, uh, looking at the stats and refreshing my memory of this season I realized what a miserable bullpen we had this year.
Kuo was pretty much the one bright spot. 60 innings of 1.20 ERA baseball.
So, for that, he wins the "J's Dodger Blog 2010 Reliever of the Year."
How about that? As I noted on my Twitter feed last night:
Who'd have thought the Yankees could win it all? All it took was team chemistry, a little bit of magic, and a half billion dollar payroll.
Anything is possible!!! Congratulations to the Yankees, but don't do it again. Seriously. I'll go right back to hating you. We just had a more common enemy this time in the Phillies.
Anyway. Enough with all that business. Let's get down to everybody's favorite part of the year: Award Season!
Today's award: The J's Dodger Blog Comeback Player of the Year!
And the nominees are:
Guillermo Mota
-Mota not only revived himself from his 2008 season, he revived his dying career mid-way through the 2009 season. Mota finished the year with a 3.44 ERA which seems a small miracle now. If you had told me on May 17th that Mota would not only finish the season with the team, but that he would do it with a sub-3.50 ERA, I'd have slapped you for outright lying to me. Of course, right about now you'd be getting a call from me, apologizing for the slapping, but with a careful reminder that at the time, you sounded crazy, and that really, you were lucky I didn't try burning you at the stake for your words.
Why would I go through all this trouble? Because on May 17th, Guillermo Mota, who hadn't pitched in a week coming off an outing where he surrendered three runs in 2.0 IP against the Giants, came in to a 10-0 game in Florida. Clayton Kershaw had put up a masterful seven innings before giving up a leadoff double in the 8th. Mota allowed that runner to score, and got out of the inning, which would have been forgivable enough had the Dodgers not scored two runs in the top of the 9th and given Mota a cushy 12-1 lead. Mota got two quick outs, then almost as quickly, he loaded the bases. He followed that up by throwing a fat pitch to Cody Ross, which he promptly deposited over the center field wall. Mota was pulled from the game so Will Ohman could come in and get one out on one pitch. And Mota left that game with a 9.00 ERA.
It really seemed like he was cooked. That 9.00 ERA was through 15 innings pitched, mind you. But then Brad Ausmus stepped up and saved his career, at least temporarily. Ausmus noted Mota was not hiding the ball as well as he used to, therefore making it oh, so easy for the Cody Ross'es of the world to feast on him. A couple tweaks later, and Mota surrenders just two runs from May 17th all the way until the end of July (35.1 innings pitched). His ERA, for a little while, was in the high 2.00's. God, I sure hope Mota bought Ausmus something nice for that one.
Vicente Padilla
-When it was made news in the Rangers clubhouse that Vicente Padilla was let go, reports say a small celebration took place. The clubhouse in Texas had turned on Padilla. He was a hot head who threw at opposing team's players too often and didn't have good enough stats to back him up (4.92 ERA in 18 starts).
Flashforward. Padilla is picked up by the Dodgers. He had just gone 4-0 in 7 starts and had a 3.20 ERA during the regular season. But now, surprisingly, Padilla had made it onto the NLDS roster. Not as a long relief arm out of the pen, but as the Game 3 starter! Padilla goes seven shutout innings in St. Louis to clinch the series. Dodger fans are shocked. This has turned out surprisingly well. How does Padilla build on that? He pitches 7.1 innings of one run ball against Philadelphia in the NLCS, starting and keeping us in the only game we would win that series. Yes, the (seemingly inevitable) meltdown that took place in Game 6 really put a damper on the "Vicente Padilla: Playoffs MVP" parade that was building up, but nevertheless, you got to give it to a guy who was tossed out of Texas. He showed up in L.A. and played ball.
Jeff Weaver
-You want to talk about bad career prospects? At this time, last season, Weaver had just finished a stint with the Cleveland Indians' AAA team in Buffalo. He had a 6.07 ERA. This, mind you, came after spending the first half of the season with Milwaukee's AAA team in Nashville, where he posted a 6.22 ERA. Most people with numbers like that might have called it quits. Not Jeff Weaver. Nope, Weaver decided he'd still have a go at it and caught on with his former team the Dodgers.
Where he went on to post 3.65 ERA in 28 games (79 IP). Weaver was our long man out of the pen and an occasional spot starter this year, and he was fairly successful in both roles.
He even had some nice high points during the season. On June 20th, he started opposite his younger brother Jered in Anaheim and came out victorious.
And even though he only made on postseason appearance, he pitched a good 1.1 innings against the Cardinals and came away with a win for his efforts. Not bad.
...And the J's Dodger Blog Comeback Player of the Year is...
Jeff Weaver.
There's a lot to be said for Mota's and Padilla's comebacks ...and I said a lot of it. They were nice stories, but let's be honest, coming into this season, both pitchers probably felt pretty secure with the idea they would have a home on a major league team. (Plus, as far as this award goes, Padilla shot himself in the foot when he shot himself in the foot.)
Jeff Weaver didn't. How could he? How can you put up such God-awful numbers in AAA and expect to even be pitching in AAA the next season. Weaver was looking like a prime candidate for a quiet and early retirement.
But he proved all the doubters who still cared about his career wrong. He really did have a nice season. Can he repeat on his success? I don't know, but I do think he's done enough to earn himself a spot on next year's roster in the same role.
So, for reviving a career that flat-lined for an entire year in AAA, Jeff Weaver is the "J's Dodger Blog 2009 Comeback Player of the Year."
Now that all the awards have been given out in baseball, it's time for me to give out my rewards, so we'll take a quick break from Player Profiles to hand out some rewards. First up: Comeback Player of the Year.
Just three nominees for the Comeback Player of the year:
Ángel Berroa
-After playing only nine games in the majors in 2007 and being sent to the Kansas City Royals' AAA team, Berroa was picked up by the Dodgers midseason. He then proceeded to start 64 games at shortstop for the Dodgers. He hit his first homerun in two years and played solid defense down the stretch.
Chan Ho Park
-Playing on three different teams after leaving the Dodgers before the 2002 season (including playing only one game in the majors in 2007), and not having an ERA below 4.80 over that time, Chan Ho returned to the team that first signed him. He made 54 appearances in 2008 (including five spot starts) and went 4-4 with a 3.40 ERA.
Hong-Chih Kuo-Kuo made it into only eight games in 2007, posting a 7.42 ERA while struggling with injuries throughout the year. Always an injury threat, Kuo made it through most of the 2008 season, appearing in 42 games (including three spot starts) and went 5-3 with a 2.14 ERA.
...And the Comeback Player of the Year is...
Chan Ho Park.
Ángel Berroa was a solid enough replacement at short stop, but not incredibly impressive. Many always knew Hong-Chih Kuo was a good pitcher but just needed to stay healthy, and when he did that, he proved how good he could be. His comeback was not nearly as good as say...
Chan Ho Park, on the other hand, had a great year for someone who's career was looking in question coming into the season. Despite his dropoff near the end of the season, Chan Ho still had his lowest ERA since 2000. In fact, if not for a handful of bad games near the end of the season, Chan Ho had an ERA below 3.00 for most of the season. He played three different roles out of the bullpen (spot starter, short reliever, long reliever) and did it all well.
So with that, Chan Ho Park is the "J's Dodger Blog 2008 Comeback Player of the Year."
...and provided Jeter-esque Gold Glove defense in left.
