It is award season. This past week the award winners in Major League Baseball were announced. Certainly, in most years the voters (players/writers) get it right more often than not. But this year they certainly missed on a few. Rookies of the YearAmerican League The Sporting News gave the award to two Florida-based players, Wil Myers (Rays, .293/.354/.478) and Jose Fernandez (Marlins, 12-6, 2.19 ERA with 187 strikeouts). Myers was the obvious winner in the AL. Jose Iglesias of the Red Sox and then the Tigers came in second followed by Myers teammate Chris Archer in third. The Rays were three games over .500 when Myers got to the big leagues but went 56-38 after his arrival. He only played in 88 games but his power and run production had a major impact as he added length and depth to the order. He hit .293 with 13 home runs and 53 RBI in those 88 games. I cant wait to see what he can do in a full season. Iglesias is a slick fielding but light-hitting shortstop who will continue to improve over time. He will be the answer for years in Detroit after they acquired him mid-season from Boston. Archer was an effective starter and there is no doubting that but he had a number of peaks and valleys to accumulate his final numbers (9-7, 3.22 ERA). He was dominating at times but was just average at times as well. AL Rookie of the Year: Wil Myers, Tampa Bay National League Jose Fernandez at the age of 20 did some remarkable things this year. He was second in ERA to CY Young winner Clayton Kershaw (1.89 ERA). He led all rookies in most pitching categories. The Marlins (62-100) went 18-10 in his starts. All really great stuff for such a young player who gained 26 of 30 first place votes. But was he really the best in the NL? Yasiel Puig came in second in the voting with only four first place votes. He was robbed. He hit .319 and slugged 19 homers and drove in 42 runs while scoring 66 in 104 games. His .391 on-base percentage and .534 slugging percentage were the best among NL rookies. The Dodgers were 23-32 before Puigs call up to the big leagues and were mired in last place in the NL West. They went 69-38 and won the division after his contract was added to the major league roster. Puig made a huge impact. He sparked the fans, which in turn sparked his teammates. One could argue that he made baseball exciting again in LA. The Dodgers were on the verge of firing manager Don Mattingly and now he is negotiating a contract extension. Puig is a handful to manage, as he is a big personality with limited boundaries in his behaviour. But boy is he great. You can make the argument that he energized all of baseball and should be a candidate for the MVP Award. He was definitely better than Jose Fernandez and deserved to win the NL award. NL Rookie of the Year: Yasiel Puig, Los Angeles Dodgers Managers of the Year The Baseball Writers vote for the Managers of the Year. Remember the votes are submitted before the playoffs begin so the award is a regular season award. The writers awarded Terry Francona in the AL for the Indians dramatic turnaround and they awarded Clint Hurdle in the NL for the Pirates first playoff berth since 1992. National LeagueIt had been an awfully long time since the Pirates last celebrated with champagne. They had shown flashes in recent years of being competitive only to fizzle out in the second half of the season. Hurdle did a remarkable job of blending youth with experience and maintaining a positive outlook even when voices of doubt might have started to creep in with his players. Clint is an inspirational story as he lives a life of recovery from alcohol addiction. He is open about it because he believes his willingness to be vulnerable cultivates trust with his players and he was proven to be right. Hurdle was the AAA manager for the Mets back when I was running the minor leagues. He wasnt as clear thinking then as he is now. We parted ways after a difficult season but rather than feel victimized Clint fought for a life of health and serenity. He found it and he now is fulfilling the promise of his abilities. I am so happy for him. I am a bit surprised the NL vote wasnt closer. Hurdle had 140 points including 25 first place votes compared to Dodgers manager Don Mattinglys second place total of 68 points and two first place votes. Mattingly did an amazing job in LA keeping things together when it looked like things were falling apart. Donnie Baseball maintained a positive demeanor even when people were calling for him to be fired. He managed his team through a tremendous amount of adversity with injuries and a change in closer. I particularly love the fact that he disciplined Yasiel Puig when his behaviour on and off the field called for it. Not every manager would sit a young stud to teach him a lesson while battling for a pennant. Mattingly didnt get the award but he will be awarded with a contract extension. NL Manager of the Year: Clint Hurdle, Pittsburgh Pirates American LeagueIn the AL, a case could be made for Indians manager Terry Francona, As manager Bob Melvin, Red Sox manager John Farrell, Rays manager Joe Maddon and Yankees manager Joe Girardi to be the manager of the year. The Yankees only won 86 games despite their lofty payroll but no team faced more injuries and adversity than the Yanks. They lost Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, Curtis Granderson, and CC Sabathia for significant amounts of time. Girardi had to blend guys who were seemingly in witness protection in recent years (Travis Hafner, Lyle Overbay, Vernon Wells and Alfonso Soriano). I have no idea with all of the injuries and underperformance how the Yankees won 86 games. Girardi may have had his best year managing. Joe Maddon always deserves recognition for getting so many young players to perform on such a consistent basis. He is a motivator and a teacher. He teaches his young guys how to win at the major league level. His support helps his players develop a sense of baseball maturity that you dont see elsewhere. The Rays always have one of the lowest payrolls as well. Just as remarkable is the quality of performance his Rays get from reclamation projects like James Loney, Davis DeJesus and Yunel Escobar. The Oakland As surprised everyone in 2012 by winning the AL West. Bob Melvin won the Manager of the Year for his teams success; as well he should have last season. Despite their success in 2012 there were some who still didnt believe in the As this year because of their youth and low payroll. But they did it again with solid pitching, timely hitting and very good defence. Melvins calmness keeps his players focused and under control. Their talent prevailed in the end. He did another worthy job in 2013. Terry Francona was back in the dugout this year in Cleveland and he showed why he is one of the best managers in the game. He led the Tribe to a 24-game improvement over their 2012 record and a playoff berth. When the season began I didnt think there was a chance this team could make the playoffs. The pitching staff just didnt stack up. Francona did a great job setting his players up to succeed and the more they won the more their confidence grew. Francona has a unique ability to be a different manager for every player: some guys need a pat on the back and some need a kick in the pants. Francona can deliver either. Francona got 116 points including 16 first place votes while edging out John Farrell, his former coaching partner in both Cleveland and Boston. Francona had 12 first place votes and 96 total points. John Farrell was the best offseason acquisition in baseball. He went back to Boston and fixed players who had struggled for a couple of seasons. He returned and helped blend a significant number of new faces on the roster. He helped heal the emotional damage from the Bobby Valentine era in 2012. The Red Sox had a number of injuries to their pitching staff in addition to weathering a major issue at the closers role. He is stable, cool, calm and collected. His personality fit perfectly. Farrell managed his pitcher extremely well and his position players thrived. He effectively managed young players and veterans while maximizing their production. The Red Sox had a 27-game turnaround from the 2012 season - the most significant jump in baseball. AL Manager of the Year: John Farrell, Boston Red Sox Cy Young AwardThe Baseball Writers Association of America voted the Dodger lefty Clayton Kershaw and Tigers ace Max Scherzer as their respective leagues Cy Young Award winners. National LeagueKershaw won in a landslide vote, getting all but one first place tally. Adam Wainwright of the Cardinals was the clear second place finisher with young Jose Fernandez of the Marlins in third. Kershaw (16-9 1.83 ERA) won the award for the second time in three years. He won the ERA title for the third consecutive year while punching out an NL-leading 232 batters. He had the best WHIP in baseball as well. Kershaw is the best pitcher in baseball and the Dodgers need to get him locked up with an extension ASAP. This award was a no-brainer. NL CY Young: Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers American LeagueMax Scherzer won 21 games, the most in baseball this year. He finished the season with a 21-3 record and 2.90 ERA. He got off to a great start by winning his first 13 decisions. He led the league in wins and WHIP and was second in strikeouts. Scherzer was ranked fifth in ERA but overall had more dominant qualitative numbers than three of the four pitchers in front of him. I am a bit surprised that Yu Darvish didnt muster more first place votes than he did. Darvish finished a distant second with only 93 points and no first place votes compared to 203 points and 28 first place votes for Scherzer. Darvish did have a slightly better ERA than Scherzer and 277 strikeouts compared to Scherzers 240. Of course Scherzer won 21 games compared to only 13 for Darvish. But Darvish lost seven games in which his team scored three or less runs including four games he lost by a 1-0 score. Scherzer (5.59 runs per game) had the third-highest run support in baseball while Darvish (4.28) was ranked 36th. After careful consideration, it is a close call with Darvish deserving the AL CY Young Award over Scherzer. AL CY Young: Yu Darvish, Texas Rangers Most Valuable PlayersThe Baseball Writers nailed the MVP Awards. Miguel Cabrera won the AL MVP for the second consecutive year and Andrew McCutchen won the award for the NL. American LeagueCabrera (385 points, 23 first place votes) beat out Mike Trout (282 points, five first place votes) for the second straight year. Trout (.323/.432/.537) slugged 27 homers, drove in 97 runs, scored 109 runs and walked 110 times while stealing 33 bases as well. He had another great season but Cabrera may have actually outdone his Triple Crown season from a year ago. He hit a career-high .348 while tying a career high in homers (44) and driving in 137 runs. He also scored 103 runs. Cabrera put up these huge numbers with very little production coming in the month of September due to a myriad of injuries. Cabrera is clearly a first ballot Hall of Famer and is making a statement that he may be the best right-handed hitter of all time. AL MVP: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers National LeagueAndrew McCutchen won the NL MVP in a landslide. It was far more lopsided than I anticipated. McCutchen received 28 of the 30 first place votes. I am sure some part of the draw to McCutchen for the voters was the fact that the Pirates hadnt made the playoffs since 1992. McCutchen hit .317 with 21 homers and 84 RBI. He also hit .360 in the final 55 games of the season when the Pirates were in the pennant race. The last few years the Pirates faded in the second half of the season but McCutchen didnt allow that to happen this year. Paul Goldschmidt (.302, 38 HR and 125 RBI) of the Diamondbacks finished second in the balloting with Yadier Molina ending up third. I really anticipated Molina to finish a close second behind McCutchen. Molina is a manager on the field as he guided the Cardinals pitching staff and shut down the opponents running game all season long. He also hit .317 with 80 RBI, 44 doubles and 12 homers. He hit .373 with runners in scoring position. He was as clutch a player as there was in the game. His contributions helped the Cards hold off the Pirates and Reds in the division race. Unfortunately for Molina his teammate, second baseman Matt Carpenter, stole some of his votes as Carpenter finished fourth in the balloting. NL MVP: Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh Pirates It was a great year in baseball with some amazing individual performances. I cant wait for pitchers and catchers to report for spring training. Adidas Basketball Shoes Discount . Kyrie Irving and the Cleveland Cavaliers were left fretting over an MRI on the stars left knee. Paul George scored 21 points, Roy Hibbert added 19 and the Pacers used a dominant fourth quarter to blow out the Cavaliers 91-76 on Tuesday The Pacers (25-5) have won eight in a row over Cleveland, their longest active streak against any opponent. Cheap Adidas Nmd Shoes . The 10-year deal the league and players agreed to that ended the 2011 lockout gave either side the right to opt out after six years. With the league projecting financial growth, there has been speculation that players will take that option in three years, especially since a new national TV contract will be in place by then. http://www.cheapnmdsneakersireland.com/adidas-nmd-womens-cheap-ireland.html . Kevin Durant certainly played like there was on Sunday night, scoring 36 points and grabbing 10 rebounds as the Thunder made quick work of the visiting Pacers with a 118-94 win. Adidas Nmd Shoes Near Me . The Hockey Canada Foundation is donating $50,000, with Hockey Quebec contributing $15,000. Hockey Canada also announced it will hold a skills camp for all levels of minor hockey in Lac-Mégantic during the 2013-14 season. Representatives from Hockey Canada, the Hockey Canada Foundation and Hockey Quebec were on hand Tuesday night at a meeting of the AHM de Lac-Mégantic to make the announcement and presentation. Adidas Nmd Cheap Ireland . The Reds will host the Los Angeles Dodgers tonight in the opener of a four-game series at Great American Ball Park, and the debut matchup will feature a pair of pitchers whose recent resumes have included a fair number of bases-clearing hits.WINNIPEG -- On a day when the New York Islanders needed a lift, Michael Grabner was glad to provide one. Grabner scored on a breakaway 3:53 into overtime as the Islanders defeated the Winnipeg Jets 3-2 on Tuesday. The victory came just hours after defenceman Andrew MacDonald was traded to Philadelphia and winger Thomas Vaneks future was up in the air. Cal Clutterbuck sent a pass from around the blue line up to Grabner, who slipped between Jets defencemen Jacob Trouba and Zach Bogosian and beat Ondrej Pavelec with a low shot. The Islanders (24-32-8) also got a goal and assist from Anders Lee and a goal from Colin McDonald to end a two-game losing skid. Jets captain Andrew Ladd scored his 16th and 17th goals of the season, tying the game 2-2 with 5:07 left in the third period for Winnipeg (30-26-7), which had a two-game winning streak end. Earlier in the day, the veteran MacDonald was traded to Philadelphia for centre Matt Mangene and a third-round pick in this years NHL draft and second-round pick in 2015. Vanek, who has 21 goals and 53 points, was then a healthy scratch amid rumours hell be traded before Wednesday afternoons trade deadline. "I dont really try to think about it," Grabner said of the days turmoil. "Ive been traded before, Ive been on waivers. Its business. You cant really influence what happens...You have to just stay in the moment, day by day, and after (Wednesday) well be all done for at least a couple of months again. "Ive been through this, Ive seen people traded on game days. Of course, its weird. (Vanek) came to the rink with us and then hes told hes not playing. It changes things around. But like I said, we did a great job of focusing on not letting this stuff distract us." New York captain John Tavares is already out for the rest of the season with a knee injury he suffered playing for Canada in the Olympic Games. "It was difficult," Isles coach Jack Capuano said. "Ive been around Andrew a long time and watched him grow in this league. Hes been a great player for us, a great team guy and a great friend to a lot of guys, so its tough the first game without him. "And, obviously, Thomas has been with us since the start of the year. We all know its a business, and every guy will tell you that we wish him the best of luck, both of those guys." Ladd scored his first goal after Islanders forward Josh Bailey turned over the puck in the Jets zone under pressure from defenceman Mark Stuart.dddddddddddd Winnipeg centre Olli Jokinen then sent a pass up the ice to Ladd, who went in alone on goalie Nilsson and beat him with a low shot on the blocker side at 14:53. "I thought we came out tight, but we battled back and got a lot of chances and found a way to get it to overtime," Ladd said. "I think well take the positive of getting one point and move on." In the final three minutes, Nilsson was called for delay of game when he shot the puck over the glass, but the Jets couldnt capitalize on their fifth power play of the game. Nilsson made 36 saves and Pavelec stopped 24 shots. The Jets, now 11-3-2 under head coach Paul Maurice, who took over after Claude Noel was fired Jan. 12, didnt help or hurt themselves too much in the playoff race. Winnipeg is now one point back of the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference, which is held by the Dallas Stars, who lost 4-2 Tuesday in Columbus but have a game in hand. Winnipeg sits at 67 points, one ahead of Vancouver, which fell to Phoenix 1-0 Tuesday night. "They were a tough opponent tonight," Jets winger Blake Wheeler said. "And like I said, were proud of the fact that we were able to rally and get a point." Winnipeg opened the scoring when centre Bryan Little won a faceoff against Frans Nielsen and pushed the puck ahead to Ladd, who went to the front of the net and beat Nilsson between the pads at 10:57. The Islanders, who were dominating the first period, kept pressuring Pavelec and got a lucky bounce when Ryan Stromes shot went off the backboards and out onto McDonalds stick and he fired the puck in at 17:30 to tie the game. New York scored 1:33 into the second period on a goal that was reviewed for high sticking. Lee went in alone on Pavelec, who got a piece of his shot, but the puck went high behind him and Lee put his stick up and knocked it down and into the net for his third goal of the season. The Jets outshot the Islanders 17-7 in the middle frame to up their margin 26-20, but they lost rookie Mark Scheifele to a knee injury. The young centre took a hit from defenceman Calvin de Haan with just under nine minutes left in the period, fell to the ice and went straight to the dressing room. Maurice said Scheifele, who has 13 goals and 34 points this season, will be evaluated on Wednesday. Winnipeg hosts Los Angeles on Thursday. Notes: Tuesday marked Paul Maurices 1,100th game as a head coach. ' ' '