Timmy Winning Player-voted Awards: Priceless

by tobias on Oct 21, 2008 12:44 PM PDT

I was very excited to see Tim Lincecum win the Players' Choice award for Outstanding Pitcher, and the Sporting News Pitcher of the Year award. These player-voted awards are far more meaningful, in my book, than the Cy Young.

The players pay much closer attention, in my opinion. They watch each others' performances over the course of the whole season, not just in September. Most of the players have the added advantage of having actually stood in a batters box (often multiple times) against each pitcher in question.

And players, for the most part, have a much better idea of what makes a dominant, outstanding pitcher than the scribes and talking heads on TV do. And this was Lincecum's first full season. Players didn't just vote for him from reputation, the way they may have voted for perennial award winners in the past. He earned this.

The tried and true BBWAA process for voting the Cy Young works more like this:

- STEP ONE (April-August): Watch "Big Name" pitchers and Yankee/Red Sox pitchers. Ignore everyone else.

- STEP TWO (September--compile list of 2-3 "Finalists"): 1) Peruse stats page in sports section; see who is leading the league in Wins, ERA, Strikeouts and Saves. 2) Add in best pitcher from a contending team. 3) Add in any aforementioned "Big Name/East Coast" pitchers. 4) Ask sportswriter pals who they are voting for.

- STEP THREE (October): Vote for whoever has the best outing in their final appearance of the season.

Great job Timmeh!

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There's a FanShot...

But hey, you put content into it. Better than most others.

I’d like to say that this is a pre-runner to Lincecum getting the Cy Young but, the voters have already voted so this wouldn’t give them more info.

The Basil Fawlty Moderating Strategy:
"We could run a nice blog here if we didn't have all these members getting in the way."

by WalrusMan on Oct 21, 2008 1:12 PM PDT reply actions

When were the Cy Young votes tallied?

by deuce deuce on Oct 21, 2008 1:23 PM PDT up reply actions

Sometime before the playoffs. I don’t know if there’s an exact date.

There amass been plenty of articles written this spring about the stud shortstop Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum , as well as the fluid young outfielders and thirteen basemen Kevin Frandsen.
comics | art | Nattowear | McFAQ I & II

by Natto on Oct 21, 2008 1:28 PM PDT up reply actions

Actually, I know they do the actual voting before the playoffs, but maybe they count them afterwards. *shrug *

by Natto on Oct 21, 2008 1:29 PM PDT up reply actions

When's it announced?

by Gob on Oct 21, 2008 4:14 PM PDT up reply actions

November 11

by Natto on Oct 21, 2008 4:18 PM PDT up reply actions

Gracias.

by Gob on Oct 21, 2008 4:20 PM PDT up reply actions

Who's gonna get it?

– ducks –

"Ain't got a hope in Hell - that's my belief." - Bon Scott

by victor frankenstein on Oct 21, 2008 4:21 PM PDT up reply actions

The whole process really seems silly to me. If they insist on doing the voting for awards before the playoffs, then why wouldn’t they just announce them at that time as well? That would also throw the “playoff performances are taken into account” conspiracy theory out the window as well.

by deuce deuce on Oct 21, 2008 4:55 PM PDT up reply actions

I certainly hopes that Tim wins the Cy Young. The other awards are great, but Cy Young is the only one that gets remembered beyond this year. Hopefully he’ll still be with the Giants when they announce the winner, and some Giants’ fans on this board won’t trade him for seventeen minor leaguers.

Brian Sabean's new dad: Firm believer in corporal punishment

by rxmeister on Oct 21, 2008 6:31 PM PDT reply actions

Ugh

Lincecum isn’t going anywhere.

by Natto on Oct 21, 2008 6:45 PM PDT up reply actions

I dunno

He might get traded for Mike Hampton.

Section 314 FTW!

by KingofDucks1987 on Oct 21, 2008 7:17 PM PDT up reply actions

Hampton would have to sign with someone first.

by Natto on Oct 21, 2008 7:24 PM PDT up reply actions

Semantics shemantics

Section 314 FTW!

by KingofDucks1987 on Oct 21, 2008 8:05 PM PDT up reply actions

Demeaning

I personally think Cy Young Award voters have put far too high a premium on wins over the years, but I think the description here of how the voters vote is highly demeaning — unless it was meant strictly as a joke.

The third step, voting in October, wouldn’t seem to make much sense, since I suspect the votes had to be postmarked no later than September 30th.

I do agree that particularly in the case of pitchers, the players who face them probably have the best idea. It was indeed a much-deserved honor for Tim to win the voting by the players — and frankly I would have been more surprised if he hadn’t won that than I would be if he didn’t win the Cy (which I believe he will, since the writers DO talk to the players).

by sharksrog on Oct 22, 2008 12:33 AM PDT reply actions

I like to try to have it both ways...

Be demeaning, be funny and make a point. Wait…that’s three ways.

I admit I was going for a bit of hyperbole with my description of how sportswriters and their ilk vote for the Cy Young. Demeaning people I’ve never met—it’s what I do best!

Why couldn't McCovey have hit the ball just three feet higher??

by tobias on Oct 22, 2008 4:43 PM PDT reply actions

If they would stop voting for the wrong people we would stop saying demeaning things about them.

by chilibean_3 on Oct 22, 2008 6:49 PM PDT up reply actions

Cy Young Award

I suppose Wins are overvalued to Cy Young voters because Cy Young has the most career wins (also has the most career losses.)

I’d like to see a Nolan Ryan award for a pitcher who dominates hitters, strikes out a ton of guys, and could potentially throw a no-hitter every time out. A criticism of Ryan was that he was “a .500 pitcher” to which someone replied “a .500 pitcher for a bunch of .350 horseshit teams.”

Or, they could just call it the Tim Lincecum Award…

Ralph Barbieri, heal thyself.

by ThrillisGone22 on Oct 22, 2008 6:06 PM PDT reply actions

Walter Johnson

While Walter Johnson is “only” second in career wins, in part because he played for a horrible Washington Senators team over his career, I would say many if not most believe him to be the greatest pitcher ever. So frankly, I think the award should be named after him.

I sort of made a fool of myself about 10 years ago when the discussion of the best pitcher ever came up on a Hall of Fame board. I said that since the award for the best pitcher is called the Cy Young Award, I presumed it was Denton True. Much to my surprise (but ultimate pleasure, since I learned something somewhat important), the many reasons one could Cy-pher why Walter was True-ly better (not to mention 20 years Young-er) than Denton and deserved the all-time Award were Christy-ly clear, my dear Mathewson.

As I recall, the number of reasons approached Walter’s 417 career wins. The way things are going, it could take the entire Washington team seven or eight years to match those 417 wins. :)

Unless Manny Acta-s quickly, of course.

by sharksrog on Oct 23, 2008 1:28 AM PDT reply actions

i have no idea what just happened.

Brian Sabean figures that if he buys enough bottles, one of them is bound to have lightning in it.

by jasomack on Oct 23, 2008 12:11 PM PDT up reply actions

You don't think

You don’t think I do — do you? :)

by sharksrog on Oct 23, 2008 4:40 PM PDT up reply actions

i would much prefer the players voting for the cy young than the idiots that control it right now. i don’t understand how people whose jobs it is to follow baseball don’t know anything about the game.

Brian Sabean figures that if he buys enough bottles, one of them is bound to have lightning in it.

by jasomack on Oct 23, 2008 12:13 PM PDT reply actions