Power Pros Forum

Dish, that's total BS. The Tigers have both Fielder and Verlander. Sure, they're better with Cabrera, they're still likely playoff contenders without him. And saying he doesn't deserve just because he's a rookie is stupid too. It's who's the most valuable this season. It doesn't matter what he can do for years to come. Plus, where would the Angels be without Trout? Sure, they have Pujols, but it was Trout who provided a spark when Albert struggled at the beginning. I think Miggy will win it, but there's no way he should

Trout's batting average over the last two months:

.284 in August
.274 in September

This might not be such a problem if he wasn't a rookie. He has no history. Sure, 46 steals is awfully impressive, and his defense is fantastic. But is he better than Miguel Cabrera? No. He is not.

I usually try to avoid arguments on here, but 8 votes to 2 (both by Detroit fans) kind of pisses me off, especially when it seems so many people are making this decision hastily.

In the bold: It's not necessarily who is better over their career, it's who's had the bigger impact this season.

I can't speak for others, but I didn't make that decision hastily; I admitted it's a tough decision, one I don't think I could possibly make if I was one of the voters.

/me boos the AL

But anyways, I direct you all to these two links as to why I picked Trout (which I did do, even though Kotchman is a definite candidate ):

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/al-mvp-debate-we-did-this-two-years-ago/
http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/mike-trout-miguel-cabrera-and-measuring-value/

That second article was a really good read, but this annoyed me:

"Does anyone seriously want to argue that the Tigers are better off because Cabrera decided to become a bad defensive third baseman so that that group could get more playing time?"

His fielding has been average to above average.

But, anyways, that article presented the best argument for Trout I've seen so far. I think if the Tigers make the playoffs, with Cabrera's incredible play down the stretch, and the Angels falter along with Trout, Cabrera should win it. If the Angels make the playoffs as well as the Tigers, who knows?

Exactly what I was saying. It's so tough to decide because there's a chance both teams will make it, or they might both not, and both Trout and Cabrera with be a huge factor in their teams' playoff chances.

I voted for Trout, but it really is a toss up. The only reason being that he's so young and he's doing so well.

But, the both of them are incredible players, so it really could go either way.

If Miggy gets the triple crown, AND DOESNT get MVP, imma stop watching baseball.
Sure Trout is good, but the only thing that could top a triple crown is a perfect game, and i Don't think non pitchers get those.
I voted Miggy, and I'm a frickin Twins fan.

Cabrera's defense has not been average to above average:
http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?p ... &sort=23,d

As you can probably guess, his range is well below acceptable levels for the position. Not saying it should be a deal breaker, just putting the facts out there.

As for Trout:
http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?p ... &sort=23,d

I think you should know that Lou Gehrig won the Triple Crown in 1934 and finished fifth. Ted Williams accomplished the feat twice and finished second both times. The TC is not the be all end all, nor should it be. It takes more than raw offense

I said Trout, and I'm a Rangers fan! I hate the Angels more than Rodwick hates the Tigers!

Also worth noting that Miggy would have no shot at the triple crown if Josh Hamilton could just stay healthy. Hamilton will be more than 60 AB's behind Miggy after today.

I believe that ANY stat trying to judge how good a defender is, is broken. "Stats" have said that Derek Jeter is the worst defensive SS in baseball,yet only 3 SS have fewer errors than him. How does that make a bad fielder? Judging fielding is all opinion based. According to this "stat" Casey Kotchman is one of the worst 1B in the league,plus the 1B with the most errors,Yonder Alonzo is the 4th best. How is Alonzo better defensively than Kotchman? I'm not saying errors is a good way to gauge defensive ability,but it is to relative to base with anything but the human eye.

Yes, but back then it happened every few years. Now, it hasn't happened in almost 50 years. It takes Serious skill to even lead in batting average or home runs, but leading in all 3 is a great feat. Trout is great, but Miggy is better

Ahh, I see you found the counter-argument to my stat. Well done. But I still think that second fangraphs article puts it well. Cabrera will have greater counting numbers because he's played more games (about 20 or so) that Trout. Break it down into percentages, then Trout has the slight edge. Add in defense and base running, and it becomes a no brainier decision