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NOMINEE |
THE SKINNY |
| Overrated |
The Los Angeles Dodgers |
I admit it. I took the bait,
picking this team to win the N.L. West. It turned out they were outscored by the
Milwaukee Brewers and outpitched by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Only the Montreal
Expos lost more games by one run. |
| Underrated |
Vladimir Guerrero, Montreal |
The Expos outfielder
banged out 42 home runs and 131 RBIs. All-Century outfielder Stan Musial never
put up better numbers. Place him in a middle market, never mind a large one, and
people will begin to understand how hugely talented Vlad
is. |
| Annoying |
Micromanaging |
Please stop the madness of pitching change
after pitching change just to get a righthander to face a righthander or a
lefthander to face a lefthander. Here's a novel idea: if a guy's throwing well,
leave him
in. |
| Breakthrough |
Brian Giles, Pittsburgh |
No one saw this
coming, especially the Indians, who traded him for a set-up reliever. The
Pirates outfielder had a better slugging percentage (.614) than Jeff Bagwell and
Ken Griffey Jr., more home runs (39) than Albert Belle and Matt Williams, and a
better on-base percentage (.418) than Craig Biggio and Shawn
Green. |
| Uplifting |
Pedro Martinez, Boston |
Kodak moment: Sandy Alomar ties
his shoe at first base, hoping to disrupt the Red Sox Cy Young winner in the
A.L. Division Series. Pedro peers over his shoulder, shakes his head and gives
Alomar a mischievous little smile and laugh, as if to say, ``You can't mess with
me.'' Over six innings the guy no-hit the greatest run producing lineup in
almost half a century -- and did it with an injured shoulder. His whiffing five
of the first six batters of the All-Star Game -- four MVPs and the single-season
home run champ -- already is legendary. Best of all, he dominated with a hop in
his step and a smile on his face. Watching him pitch, we all shared in his
joy. |
| MVP |
Chipper Jones, Atlanta |
While Martinez would be my player of the
year, the Braves third baseman was the best player on the best team in baseball
over the course of the regular season. His clutch hitting and presence in the
lineup everyday were the biggest reasons why Atlanta overcame injuries and
illness to Andres Galarraga, Kerry Ligtenberg, Odalis Perez, Javy Lopez and Rudy
Seanez to win 103
games. |
Storyline to
follow in 2000 |
Trades and salaries |
Blockbluster in-season trades -- and then
another big jump up in the salary structure -- due to the looming free agency of
players such as Chipper Jones, Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez, Mike Hampton,
Craig Biggio, Manny Ramirez and Juan Gonzalez (assuming Ken Griffey gets dealt
this winter). And the drumbeat for a salary cap or some kind of economic reform
grows louder as we head toward labor doomsday after the 2001
season. |
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