But this season, like any other year, will also be remembered for which players took home the league's most prestigious individual honors—MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year and Manager of the Year.
Here are my picks for each notable award in the American League.
MVP: Alex Bregman, Astros
There is a great case for Mike Trout to nab his third American League Most Valuable Player award. After all, the Los Angeles Angels outfielder led the AL in on-base percentage, OPS and slugging. He ranked second in homers with 45, despite missing 28 games due to injury.
Unfortunately for Trout, Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman had by far the best year of his career. Bregman finished first in the AL in the all-important Wins Above Replacement (WAR) at 8.4, just above Trout (8.3). The 25-year-old drew the most walks (119) and finished top-5 in runs, RBIs, on-base percentage, OPS and slugging. Bregman is the fifth player in AL history to reach over 40 homers, 110 and 35 doubles with less than 90 strikeouts in a seasons. The other four—Frank Thomas (1993), Ted Williams (1949), Lou Gehrig (1936) and Babe Ruth (1920, 1921 and 1924)—all won MVP in their respective season(s).
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| Alex Bregman spearheaded the Astros a MLB-best 107 wins. (AP Photo) |
Astros ace Justin Verlander, a one-time Cy Young winner, has finished runner-up for the award three times (2012, 2016 and 2018) in his legendary career. He is likely to be the runner-up again this year, despite going 21-6 with 300 strikeouts and a 2.58 ERA. Verlander achieved a career-best .803 WHIP.
The only player to outshine Verlander among AL pitchers, teammate Gerrit Cole led MLB with 326 strikeouts. Cole (20-5) set the Astros single-season record for strikeouts. Cole went 16-0 in the final 22 starts of the 2019 season with a 1.78 ERA and 226 punchouts. He had the No. 1 ERA (2.50) in the American League. Amazingly, he struck out 10 or more batters in each of his last nine starts.
Rookie of the Year: Yordan Alvarez, Astros
Yordan Alvarez played only 87 games, but he's still the odds-on favorite to win ROY. Since his June call-up, the designated hitter has posted a 1.078 OPS with 27 home runs and 78 RBIs.
In the second half of the MLB season, Alvarez wasn’t just the best rookie in the AL, he was among the best hitters in the league. He registered a tremendous slash line of .313/.412/.655.
Chicago White Sox outfielder Eloy Jimenez also had a fine inaugural season in the majors, mashing 31 homers and slugging .513.
Manager of the Year: Aaron Boone, Yankees
New York Yankees skipper Aaron Boone led his club to 103 wins, winning the AL East with ease. They accomplished this despite setting a MLB record for most injured players in a season.
This award could go to Twins first-year manager Rocco Baldelli. The Twins rebounded from a 78-84 finish in 2018 to win 101 games this season. They seized their first AL Central division title since 2010.
