Tim Lincecum of the San Francisco Giants won his second straight NL Cy Young Award. In a close race, Lincecum edged Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright — both of the St. Louis Cardinals. The Giants hurler became the first back-to-back winner since Randy Johnson won four straight Cy Young Awards from 1999 to 2002. On the season, Lincecum pitched 225.1 innings over 32 starts. He finished with a 2.48 ERA, a 1.05 WHIP and 261 strikeouts while allowing only 168 hits. Despite his fantastic stats, he only had a record of 15-7. His 15 wins were the least in baseball history for a Cy Young Award winner in a full length season. Wainwright actually had the most first place votes with 12, while Carpenter finished second in the balloting. The other... [Read more]

When Jim Tracy took over the Colorado Rockies, anyone who even suggested the team could make the playoffs would have been laughed at. The Rockies were 18-28 and looked like one of the worst teams in the league. But with Tracy at the reins, Colorado went 74-42 to finish the season and make the playoffs in the National League. As a result, Tracy was awarded the 2009 National League Manager of the Year award. He received 29 first place votes, with Tony La Russa of the St. Louis Cardinals finishing second with two first place votes. To reward Tracy for a job well done, the Rockies announced a few hours after the Manager of the Year award that Tracy and the team had agreed on a new three-year contract. Tracy will now have a chance to build off the... [Read more]

To the surprise of nobody who was following baseball closely this season, Zack Greinke of the Kansas City Royals was named the AL Cy Young Award winner. Even though he pitched for a bad team, Greinke was simply amazing. Greinke made 33 starts at went 16-8 with a 2.16 ERA and a WHIP of 1.07. In 229.1 innings, the 26-year-old gave up 195 hits, walked 51 batters and struck out 242. Finishing second in the 2009 CY Young Award balloting was Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners. Justin Verlander, the star hurler for the Detroit Tigers, finished third. CC Sabathia and Roy Halladay also received votes. This Cy Young Award illustrates how far Greinke has come. Early in his baseball career, scouts loved his potential. However, he led the AL in losses... [Read more]

The MLB honored its best rookies on Monday. In the National League, Chris Coghlan of the Florida Marlins won the NL Rookie of the Year. In the American League, Andrew Bailey of the Oakland A’s won the AL Rookie of the Year. Coghlan didn’t look like a top prospect early in the year but got better and better as the year went along. All told, the left fielder hit .321 with nine homers, 47 RBIs, 84 runs and eight stolen bases. After the All-Star Game, Coghlan hit .372 and looked like an up-and-coming star. Andrew Bailey is the rare relief pitcher to win Rookie of the Year. But after the 25-year-old stepped up and became one of the best closers in baseball, he definitely deserved the award. He finished 2009 with 26 saves to go along with... [Read more]

Aroldis Chapman’s defection from Cuba made many Major League Baseball general managers very happy. The 21-year-old pitcher has a fastball that has been clocked at over 100 MPH. And to top it off, he’s a lefty. After establishing residency in the tiny country of Andorra, Chapman is now a free agent. There has already been talk that a big league team may be interested in paying him upwards of $50 million. Which teams are possible destinations for Aroldis Chapman? Let’s take a look: New York Yankees The Yankees always like to spend money. Considering that starting pitching depth was their weakness this season, signing Chapman makes a lot of sense if they believe he’s a future starter. Boston Red Sox Like the Yankees, the... [Read more]