Bryce Harper, Josh Donaldson among finalists for MLB postseason awards

MVP finalists Josh Donaldson and Bryce Harper (AP) Baseball is one step closer to crowning its most prestigious year-end award winners. The Baseball Writers Association of America on Tuesday announced its finalists for the MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year and Manager of the Year awards.

Among the stars to make the shortlist: MVP contenders Josh Donaldson, Mike Trout and Bryce Harper, Cy Young hopefuls Zack Greinke, Clayton Kershaw, David Price and young talents Kris Bryant, Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor.

There weren’t too many surprises among the finalists, but the NL MVP was void of players whose teams made the postseason. That includes Andrew McCutchen and Anthony Rizzo, both of whom had stellar seasons. The last time all three of the top vote getters for MVP weren’t in the postseason was 1991.

Winners, as determined by a vote of baseball writers, will be announced over four days beginning Monday, Nov. 16. Here are the top three finalists in each category, along with our picks for the favorites and the most notable snub. Note: Only regular-season play is considered.

AL MVP FINALISTS
• Lorenzo Cain (Kansas City Royals)
• Josh Donaldson (Toronto Blue Jays)
• Mike Trout (Los Angeles Angels)

Favorite: This will be a tight one, perhaps the tightest race, with good cases on each side for Trout and Donaldson. Donaldson scored and drove in more runs while Trout got on base more and scored higher in Wins Above Replacement. Both are a fine choice, but the edge in RBIs (a traditional stat that appeals more to voters) and the Blue Jays making the playoffs should make Donaldson the favorite.

Notable snub: Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado, who was comparable to Trout in many categories, though his on-base percentage wasn’t nearly as good.

NL MVP FINALISTS
• Paul Goldschmidt (Arizona Diamondbacks)
• Bryce Harper (Washington Nationals)
• Joey Votto (Cincinnati Reds)

Favorite: Harper isn’t just the favorite, he’s one of the few shoe-ins among all of these categories. His team didn’t make the postseason, sure, but he had a Barry Bonds-esque season and the Nats would have been an even bigger disaster without him.

Notable snub: Andrew McCutchen had another stellar year for the Pittsburgh Pirates, who were the second-best team in the NL. He’s across-the-board good. He hits well, gets on base, drives in runs and is the leader of his team.

(AP)

AL CY YOUNG FINALISTS
• Sonny Gray (Oakland Athletics)
• Dallas Keuchel (Houston Astros)
• David Price (Toronto Blue Jays)

Favorite: Price had a stellar season, but Keuchel was a start-to-finish ace for the Astros, giving them the top-of-the-rotation dependability that turned them into a playoff team. He pitched the most innings in the AL, had the most wins and his ERA was only .03 behind Price, who led the AL. Keuchel is the favorite.

Notable snub: Chris Sale had an up-and-down season at times, but his AL-best 274 strikeouts were a big accomplishment. His 3.41 ERA paled to Gray’s 2.73, but Sale, at times at least, showed Cy Young-quality stuff.

NL CY YOUNG FINALISTS
• Jake Arrieta (Chicago Cubs)
• Zack Greinke (Los Angeles Dodgers)
• Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers)

Favorite: Here’s another big debate: Arrieta was lights out in the second half, emerging as the Cubs’ ace and winning 22 games with a 1.77 ERA. In another year, he’d be a no-brainer. But Greinke’s 1.66 ERA was even better. He was unhittable at times. Greinke feels like the favorite, but Arrieta could win if the Dodgers split the vote. No one here is a bad choice.

Notable snub: Max Scherzer threw two no-hitters and isn’t even a finalist. That’s how good the top NL pitchers were this season. He had a 2.79 ERA and struck out 276 batters, but is rightly the odd-man out.

AL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
• Carlos Correa (Houston Astros)
• Francisco Lindor (Cleveland Indians)
• Miguel Sano (Minnesota Twins)

Favorite: This is a tight one between Correa and Lindor, who happen to play the same position. Lindor is a better defender and Correa is a better power hitter. Still, Lindor hit for better average, was on base more and owns the edge in WAR. The Astros making the playoffs and Correa being an integral part of that will sway some writers, but the numbers say Lindor is the favorite.

Notable snub: A’s outfielder Billy Burns played the most games among AL rookies and hit .294 while getting on base 33 percent of the time. He also stole 26 bases and contributed to an A’s team that didn’t have a heck of a lot going for it.

NL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
• Kris Bryant (Chicago Cubs)
• Matt Duffy (San Francisco Giants)
• Jung-ho Kang (Pittsburgh Pirates)

Favorite: Bryant went into the season as the favorite, saw some challengers mid-year, but kept on hitting and made himself the favorite. His 26 homers and 99 RBIs are very impressive and his .369 was tops among NL rookies.

Notable snub: There were lots of worthwhile NL rookies, but Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard stands out as one not on the list. He pitched 150 inning with a 9.96 K/9 (tops among NL rookie starters) and won nine games. Perhaps he shouldn’t crack the top three, but he should at least be close.

AL MANAGER OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
• Jeff Banister (Texas Rangers)
• A.J. Hinch (Houston Astros)
• Paul Molitor (Minnesota Twins)

Favorite: They’re all first-year managers and all surpassed expectations, but Banister did so the most, guiding the Rangers to the AL West crown when they weren’t even a wild-card contender to start the season.

Notable snub: Well, Ned Yost’s team won the most games in the AL and he manages the Royals in such a specific way that his fingerprints are all over that success. John Gibbons of the Blue Jays would have also been a good choice.

(Getty Images)

NL MANAGER OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
• Terry Collins (New York Mets)
• Joe Maddon (Chicago Cubs)
• Mike Matheny (St. Louis Cardinals)

Favorite: Collins managed the most drama, from the Matt Harvey debacle to trade-deadline tears. He kept the Mets’ head above water in tough times and helped them excel to the NL East crown when things started going well. He’s the pick here.

Notable snub: Giants manager Bruce Bochy gets plenty of praise for his abilities, but 2015 might have been just as impressive as his World Series seasons. The Giants were beat up all year and Bochy kept the team together enough to finish second in the NL West and challenge for the postseason. The three finalists are the right picks, but if there were a fourth, Bochy is it.

AWARD SCHEDULE
• Nov. 16: Rookie of the year winners announced
• Nov. 17: Manager of the year winners announced
• Nov. 18: Cy Young winners announced
• Nov. 19: MVP winners announced

** Winners announced on MLB Network, 6 p.m. ET

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