Pujols, Jeter win Hank Aaron Award
PHILADELPHIA — Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols, who figures to win his third National League Most Valuable Player award next month, won a second Hank Aaron award Sunday night.
Pujols and the New York Yankees’ Derek Jeter (American League) were announced as the 2009 Aaron winners before Game 4 of the World Series although Pujols, who recently had right elbow surgery, was not on hand.
The award, named for the former great Milwaukee and Atlanta slugger, goes to the best overall offensive performer in each league. The winners were derived from online fan balloting.
Pujols, who also was honored in 2003, had 47 homers this season, marking the first time he has led the league in homers and the first Cardinal to lead since new hitting coach Mark McGwire in 1998-99. Besides leading the majors in homers, he also led in runs scored (124), on-base percentage (.443) and slugging (.658).
Besides hitting .327 and driving in 135 runs, both of which were third in the league, Pujols was 10 for 17 with five home runs when hitting with the bases loaded. His 44 intentional walks were a major-league record for a righthanded batter.
Pujols is the only player in baseball history to hit above .300 with 30 or more homers and 100 or more runs batted in his first nine seasons in the majors.
(2 votes, average: 4 out of 5)
Loading ...
As I have stated before…enjoy the ride…Albert is a once-in-a-lifetime talent who, when it’s all said and done, will supplant the great Lou Gehrig as the finest first baseman ever to play the game, will supplant Stan Musial as the greatest Cardinal to ever don the Birds and Bat logo and will be mentioned in the same breath as Ruth, Williams and Mays…congratulations Albert…
The AL winner is further testament to the fact that this award is a popularity contest. While Pujols is the obvious choice year after year in the NL (even though Aramis Ramirez undeservedly won in 2008), Jeter numbers (.334 avg, 18 HR, 66 RBI) don’t even come close to Mauer’s (.365 avg, 28 HR, 96 RBI). The Hank Aaron Award is meant to be presented to the best hitter in each league, and like Albert last year, Joe was robbed of it this time around. MLB needs to change this, just like it needs to get rid of fans being able to vote 25 times per email address for the All-Star Game.
HERCULES:
Hercules, sorry about the premature ejaculation on the previous post. At 77, it’s a given.
What I wanted to say is, I AGREE with you 100% …. except his recognition as the premier 1st baseman over Gehrig and thought of in the same breath as Ruth, Williams and May. Nice thought … but you under estimate the “homer” attitudes of the “objective” press. Ask anybody, any place, who they know better … some nobody on the East Coast or one of the greatest in the midwest - Musial … and it’s not even a contest. They have no concept of ANY intelligent life west of the Hudson. In fact, it pains them to recognize Boston … but they will ad nauseum re: Willaims, Mays, Snider: zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Just enjoy what we have and ignore the “homers”.
J.Saracini: My turn to agree with you…Stan Musial has never received, even to this day, his just due for how great a player he was…at 49 years old I just missed out on being able to see him in person but certainly can relate to those who did…in my opinion, the difference between Musial and Pujols and the appreciation of their status as generational players revolves solely around the difference in media capabilities today as opposed to 55-60 years ago when Stan was in his prime…unless the Cardinals were in the World Series, the New York and/or Boston media markets pretty much never saw him play…ESPN has obviously changed the landscape as Albert is pretty much seen on a daily basis by everyone coast to coast and therefore his talents are undeniable…Stan would have been viewed the same way had he played in this era…
Jeter winning goes to show that (a) the Hank Aaron award can’t be seen a “real” award in the same sense that the MVP and Cy Young are (not that the voters for those awards are perfect, but still…) and (b) the MVP is therefore the only “real” award for position players (unless you count the Silver Slugger awards). At least they got Pujols right…although it’s hard to believe this will be just his second one.
Wasn’t Jeter once voted the “most overrated player” by, uh, the players?
Yup, it’s a popularity contest alright, especially in the AL.
Hercules et als. This conversation can do without the constant criticism of the “eastern” press, media, bias, etc. The only player active today who has a track record to challenge Pujols for over all supremacy is Alex Rodriguez. As a former shortstop and current third baseman, he gets some extra credit for his defensive position. Albert is the premier hitter of his day, and no one I have ever seen can top him with the bat.
I believe that one more year that is comparable to this year or 2007 will cement his position as the best first baseman ever. Right now, Gehrig’s record rates a slight edge.
Babe Ruth is still the greatest player ever, and that is not eastern bias, despite the fact that I live in the Eastern Time Zone. I am a 69-year-old lifelong Cardinal fan. My screen name is a tribute to Stan Musial. I confess that Stan is not clearly the best player I have ever seen, although he is the greatest Cardinal I ever saw until Albert came along. Stan is among the five or six best I have ever seen.
I am hard put to say he is better than Aaron, Mantle, or Mays. I may shock you, but I also put Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez in the competition. Ted Williams was a better hitter than Stan, but the formerly named five are better overall. I can’t say Albert is a better hitter than Ted, but he is probably just as good, and he is far better in every other area. Not counting pitchers, however, I think these are the seven best I’ve seen, with Ricky Henderson being right behind them.