Who should win the 2012 AL MVP award?

[Sticksboi05]

It's a two man race, and it's basically traditionalists vs. sabremetricians so who deserves the AL MVP award this season.

For the record, neither is a bad choice so any posts suggesting so might as well be laughed off.

[Spaceman Spiff]

I gotta say Trout. I don't think it boils down to a sabermetrician debate, either.

Trout brings more to the game, he's a true 5 tool talent. He runs, defends and throws better than Cabrera. Trout arguably should have won a Gold Glove this year.

Add to that that he wasn't that far off in OPS (.963 to .999) from Cabrera, lead the league in steals with a ridiculous 49/5 rate and lead the league in runs, it's no contest, IMO. Cabrera gets a lot of deserved attention for winning the Triple Crown, however he was arguably worse this past year than the previous two.

[AsiaticSkinsFan]

Trout

I dont care who took Golden Glove over him, dude was the best CF in the field this year.

The stolen bases too.

And he turned around a poor Angels team.

[skinsfan_1215]

Cabrera. Both are really good, but you can't ignore the first triple crown in 40 years just because Trout is fast and plays defense well. He'll have his time. This year was Cabrera's.

[lovetoaster]

I still have to go with Cabrera. Trout was awesome, but I can't take him over a Triple Crown winner. I just can't. A big thing in my mind is that Cabrera performed better down the stretch in August and September when it mattered. The White Sox collapse helped the Tigers get to the playoffs, but Cabrera also put them on his back late in the season. Trout fizzled out later in the year, and the Angels did not make it to the postseason. Is that all his fault? Absolutely not, but in addition to winning the Triple Crown, Cabrera performed better when it mattered most.

Don't get me wrong, I am a stat guy for the most part and numbers matter. But I don't think that they tell the whole story. They both deserve it and it is damn close, but I have to go with Cabrera.

[pjfootballer]

I said Cabrera, mainly for what sknsfan_1215 and lovetoaster said.

[Fight4RGIII]

Trout will get his. It's Cabrera's year. Plain and simple.

[Warhead36]

I wouldn't call myself a traditionalist, I'm probably more on the sabermetrics side, but I'd go with Cabrera. You have to give it to the guy who made history.

[lovetoaster]

The thing I wonder is whether some people won't vote for Cabrera because they don't like him. Let's be honest, he has made some mistakes. But by all accounts, he has cleaned up his act. But there are a lot of people that have a negative reaction to him when his name is mentioned.

Trout on the other hand is a clean-cut guy that, to the best of our knowledge, does not have any skeletons in his closet.

This is not a morality award, but I have given up trying to figure out what baseball writers are going to do with their votes. I am fairly certain that some will not vote for Cabrara because they don't like him.

[Tulane Skins Fan]

I always thought MVP went to the guy who was the best player. Its not close between these two. Trout was a far superior overall player.

That being said, Cabrera will win because people think a triple crown is something more than a collection of three random stats.

---------- Post added November-15th-2012 at 10:58 AM ----------

I wouldn't call myself a traditionalist, I'm probably more on the sabermetrics side, but I'd go with Cabrera. You have to give it to the guy who made history.

trout made history as well. a lot of history.

[Spaceman Spiff]

I still have to go with Cabrera. Trout was awesome, but I can't take him over a Triple Crown winner. I just can't. A big thing in my mind is that Cabrera performed better down the stretch in August and September when it mattered. The White Sox collapse helped the Tigers get to the playoffs, but Cabrera also put them on his back late in the season. Trout fizzled out later in the year, and the Angels did not make it to the postseason. Is that all his fault? Absolutely not, but in addition to winning the Triple Crown, Cabrera performed better when it mattered most.

Don't get me wrong, I am a stat guy for the most part and numbers matter. But I don't think that they tell the whole story. They both deserve it and it is damn close, but I have to go with Cabrera.

Trout did fizzle a bit, but you can point to him arriving in Anaheim as the time that the Angels started winning, too.

[lovetoaster]

I always thought MVP went to the guy who was the best player. Its not close between these two. Trout was a far superior overall player.

That being said, Cabrera will win because people think a triple crown is something more than a collection of three random stats.

To me, best player and most valuable player can be two different things. But yes, the vote usually tends to skew toward best player.

---------- Post added November-15th-2012 at 11:02 AM ----------

Trout did fizzle a bit, but you can point to him arriving in Anaheim as the time that the Angels started winning, too.

Oh, absolutely. He definitely gave that lineup exactly what they needed. People benefitted throughout the lineup, especially Pujols.

[DM72]

Cabrera. Both are really good, but you can't ignore the first triple crown in 40 years just because Trout is fast and plays defense well. He'll have his time. This year was Cabrera's.

This. PLUS, Cabrera lead his team to the playoffs. That has to count for something.

[MLSKINS]

Triple Crown and a World Series appearance.... This shouldn't even be debatable

[MattFancy]

I'm going Cabrera. Yes Trout had an amazing year, but you don't see a Triple Crown season very often. I won't argue if Trout wins it, I just think Cabrera deserves it more.