DUGOUT: Baseball awards to be announced this week

Throughout this week and leading up to Thanksgiving, the Baseball Writers Association of America will announce the winners of their various awards.

The Rookie of the Year awards for both leagues were announced on Monday, with Chris Coghlan and Andrew Bailey taking home the honors.

Coghlan, 24, was an outfielder for the Florida Marlins this season with an incredible ability to get on base. Tallying a .321/.390/.460 triple-slash batting line, Coghlan was a key element on a young Marlins team that finished second in the NL East.

Playing both second and third base in the minor leagues, Coghlan was forced to play the outfield when he was promoted. This led to a well-below-average defensive season from the rookie, but apparently the BBWAA voters didn’t feel the need to punish Coghlan for his struggles in the field.

Some feel that Andrew McCutchen of the Pittsburgh Pirates was more deserving of the award. McCutchen, 22, played 108 games this season while displaying incredible speed and power.

Posting a .286/.365/.471 batting line, McCutchen stole 22 bases and hit 12 home runs during the season.

As discussed in this space a few months ago, Bailey was a terrific reliever for the Oakland Athletics this season. Earning an All-Star appearance, Bailey posted a 1.84 ERA in 68 games this year, and his 238 ERA+ (meaning Bailey was 138 percent better than league average) was one of the best in the American League.

Yesterday, the American League Cy Young Award was handed to Zack Greinke, owner of a league-best 2.16 ERA and 1.073 WHIP (walks plus hits per innings pitched).

Despite pitching for the second-worst offense in the league, Greinke managed 16 wins against eight losses.

Also considered for the award were CC Sabathia of the New York Yankees, Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers, and Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners.

The winner of the National League Cy Young Award will be announced tomorrow, but today, the baseball world will learn who the BBWAA thought were the best managers in both leagues.

There are some who think that the Manager of Year award should be dissolved. There is no accepted way to evaluate managers outside of win/loss record, which most agree is influenced more by the talent of the players than the ability of the manager.

Then again, not recognizing the individuals who make the decisions (pitching matchups, batting lineups, defensive alignments, etc.) that have a large impact on a game seems wrong, as well. Either way, the favorites in the American League for this year are Ron Gardenhire of the Minnesota Twins, Mike Scioscia of the Los Angeles Angels, and Don Wakamatsu of the Seattle Mariners.

In the National League, Joe Torre of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Jim Tracy of the Colorado Rockies, and Tony LaRussa of the St. Louis Cardinals are among those expected to receive votes.

The most highly touted award, Most Valuable Player, will be announced on Nov. 23 and 24. Albert Pujols is almost certainly going to win the NL MVP, while Joe Mauer is favored to win the AL MVP.

Three of my own postseason awards

With the announcement of the BBWAA awards this week, I thought I would hand out three of my own awards.

Most under-appreciated player: Franklin Gutierrez, OF, Seattle Mariners.

Gutierrez, 26, is the best defensive player in baseball. How he was snubbed out of a Gold Glove for his performance in the Seattle Mariner’s outfield this year is beyond me.

Statistically, Gutierrez’s defense saved the Mariners 29.1 runs on the season. Under the accepted rule that 10 runs equals one win, Gutierrez single-handedly won three games for Seattle without even picking up a bat.

When taking into account his above-average offensive game, Gutierrez received much less appreciation than he was due. Batting .283/.339/.425, Gutierrez hit 18 home runs on the season while stealing 16 bases.

Gutierrez is the best centerfielder in his league, and perhaps the best outfielder in baseball. He has receiving much less appreciation than he is worth.

Most over-appreciated player: Mark Teixeira, 1B, New York Yankees.

Much ado has been made over the unprecedented spending spree the Yankees went on last offseason. Teixeira, brought on for his incredible defense and awesome power, was supposed to help win the Yankees a World Championship.

Well, the Yankees did win the World Series, and Teixeira did contribute, but not nearly as much as some would have you believe.

Teixeira was the fifth-worst defensive first baseman in baseball in 2009, costing his team 3.7 runs during the season. Somehow, though, Teixeira managed to land a Gold Glove that he clearly didn’t deserve.

Offensively, Teixeira hit a league-best 39 home runs while hitting a triple-slash line of .292/.383/.565. Clearly impressive, but away from Yankee Stadium, Teixeira hit half the home runs he did in the friendly confines of his home ballpark.

I realize that Teixeira is a great player and most teams would love to have him. Some people, though, consider Teixeira the best player in the American League, which is simply ridiculous.

Teixeira isn’t the best player on his team, let along the entire league.

Player most likely to be traded: Dan Uggla, 2B, Florida Marlins.

With Chris Coghlan being announced as the National League Rookie of the Year, it appears that Uggla’s tenure in Florida may be nearing an end. Even though Coghlan played the outfield this season, his natural position is at second base.

Considering how expensive Uggla is getting, the Marlins would love to unload the 29-year-old on a team with a higher payroll.

Florida has perfected the art of selling their soon-to-be expensive players in return for a bevy of young talent. Uggla earned more than $5 million this past season, and is set to make a bundle more in arbitration this winter.

Uggla is a right-handed power hitter who walks a lot, while playing awful defense. Hitting 31 home runs last season, Uggla hit a triple-slash line of .243/.354/.459. The second baseman could easily be forced to move to another defensive position, which could make him even more valuable.

The Marlins will do whatever possible to maximize Uggla’s value this offseason and unload him in return for a plethora of prospects.

Andrew Kneeland is a junior at the Arizona Virtual Academy. He is an intern at the Green Valley News.