Youkilis...or Pedroia...??

[HeadOfSoxNation]

MVP considerations assuming a Sox postseason birth? Discuss.

[BoSox34]

Josh Hamilton.

[One Red Seat]

Insanity. Carlos Quentin (if his team makes the postseason).

Now, for Sox MVP, I say Pedroia. He is quickly becomming the heart and soul of this team, and his play has been exceptional.

[SchillingIsTheNatural]

I'm a believer the team needs to make the playoffs to have a MVP candidate:

Prediction...

LA Angels: Vlad Guerrero
Boston: Dustin Pedroia
Chicago: Carlos Quentin
Tampa Bay: Carlos Pena

....3 of those players are considered cleanup sluggers and I'd have to give it to Carlos Quentin. Good luck trying to figure out between Quentin and Pedroia who deserves it. If Pedroia wins the Gold Glove and leads the AL in BA and hits then I'd have to give it to him.

[One Red Seat]

My pick of Quentin wasn't who I thought "deserves" it, but rather who will win it. Yes, Pedroia may win the batting title, but Quentin will trump that with the HR title while still hitting for decent average, which is something the writers, who get the votes, have historically favored, as well as an edge in RBI, another big stat for them.

All things considered, the case for Pedroia is strong.

Player	WARP1	VORP	WinShares
Pedroia	8.1	50.8	18
Quentin	7.6	49.5	24
Youkilis	7.6	49.5	24
Morneau	7.7	47.3	27

Win Shares are not position dependent, thus Pedroia does trail there as his "triple crown" stats don't compare to the others. Win Shares are competent predictor of MVP winners. I think Dustin will fall short, pun intended, but when you consider position, he should be in the discussion.

[TheKilo]

I don't think Carlos Pena is an MVP candidate.

[Coco's Disciples]

I agree on Pena. .246 averages don't get votes, especially with other worthy candidates. Hell, 6 other Rays players have higher VORPs (Longoria, Upton, Kazmir, Garza, Jackson, Shields)

[Anuj09]

Jermaine Dye is another guy on the WS that i would think would be strongly considered.

[Jasonbay44]

For Red Sox MVP, I gotta go with Pedroia, he has been amazing, for league MVP its Carlos Quentin

[SchillingIsTheNatural]

Originally Posted by Coco's Disciples

I agree on Pena. .246 averages don't get votes, especially with other worthy candidates. Hell, 6 other Rays players have higher VORPs (Longoria, Upton, Kazmir, Garza, Jackson, Shields)

I don't believe Pena is MVP worthy either but if you had to choose someone from Tampa he is probably the default choice. How many times do you think the MVP is chosen by a players VORP? HR and RBI tend to be the most important stats unless you can put up 2001 Ichiro type numbers. Langoria is a better hitter but he is also a rookie.

In the end I can see Quentin vs. Pedroia and Carlos Quentin will get the MVP.

[TheKilo]

If I had to pick one player from TB I'd pick Longoria.

[Coco's Disciples]

Originally Posted by SchillingIsTheNatural

I don't believe Pena is MVP worthy either but if you had to choose someone from Tampa he is probably the default choice. How many times do you think the MVP is chosen by a players VORP? HR and RBI tend to be the most important stats unless you can put up 2001 Ichiro type numbers. Langoria is a better hitter but he is also a rookie.

In the end I can see Quentin vs. Pedroia and Carlos Quentin will get the MVP.

I know the voters don't look at VORP, but it is called Value Over Replacement Player, and MVP is Most Valuable Player. Pretty good thing to look at if you ask me. Still, neither Pena or Longoria will get serious consideration, and they don't deserve to be in the same discussion as Quentin, Pedroia, Hamilton, etc.

[TheKilo]

Hamilton shouldn't be in the discussion either, IMO.

[BoSox21]

the bullpen is the reason Tampa is far better this year so no TB candidates for me

[Coco's Disciples]

Originally Posted by TheKilo

Hamilton shouldn't be in the discussion either, IMO.

It's probably down to Quentin and Pedroia ATM. Hamilton gets some votes for his story.