Well, it's official. The Baseball media in their infiniate wisdom thinks that Albert Pujols was more valuable to the talent-laden veteran Cardinals than Andruw was to the also-talent-laden but very young and erratic Braves this season.
I beg to differ.
While the Cards rolled over the opposition this season on their way to an easy division title and a surprise postseason choke, the Braves did their usual roster shuffle with the requisite injuries, pitching meltdowns, and diamond-in-the-rough surprises, with a new twist: the emergence of the cadre of Metro Atlanta Suburban All-Stars that the organization has been incubating rather quietly in their farm system the past few years. Those guys played with an incredible amount of poise and maturity, not too surprisingly given that they have been raised from birth to be Braves. But even the most polished prospect needs guidance and leadership, and that's what Andruw stepped up to provide this year. I, for one, never would have predicted that, no more than I would have predicted that this would be the year that Andruw would finally live up to his potential at the plate.
Anyway, for those who may have forgotten, MVP stands for MOST VALUABLE PLAYER, which means the player that is MOST VALUABLE to his team. I would argue that Andruw, with his consistenly phenomenal defense, his surging offensive numbers, and uncanny leadership, was much more valuable to the Baby Braves than Pujols was to a team with the likes of Jim Edmonds, Scott Rolen, Chris Carpenter, Mark Mulder, Ray King, Jason Isringhausen, and two -- count 'em, two -- players under 25 on their active roster.
But when one plays for a team that has been as good for as long as the Atlanta Braves have been, one can expect to encounter a little bias -- and that's one obstacle that Andruw could not overcome this season.
Posted by MHB
at 5:13 PM EST
Updated: Sunday, 1 January 2006 1:10 PM EST