Could this be the season for CY/MVP?
There’s no sugar-coating the fact that this season has not been anything like what we all had hoped back in February, but there are some bright spots that are impossible to ignore. In fact, the performances of Matt Kemp and Clayton Kershaw last night once again put their names among those that have to be considered for Cy Young and Most Valuable Player in the National League.
The Dodgers haven’t had that happen since 1988 when Kirk Gibson and Orel Hershiser pulled it off and it hadn’t happened before that in Los Angeles since 1974 with Steve Garvey and Mike Marshall. Of course, we got spoiled in the early 60s when Maury Wills and Don Drysdale did it in 1962, followed by Koufax winning both awards in 1963. Don Newcombe pulled off the double-feat in 1956 back in Brooklyn, the first year the Cy Young Award was given out.
Meanwhile, it hasn’t happened to any team in the NL since Pujols and Carpenter did it for St. Louis in 2005 and the last time it happened in the bigs was when Minnesota did it with Morneau and Santana in 2006.
If the season ended today, do you think they’d both take home these coveted awards?
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Inside the Dodgers 
I would love for that to happen but hard to pick an MVP from a team that has done so poorly. We can always hope tho!
Has it ever happened to a team that finished below .500? If King Felix can win the Cy Young with a 13-12 record for a 60 win team, there’s no reason to think Kershaw can’t do the same.
I agree with Daylee that the MVP award belongs to the player who was the most beneficial to his teams success. The Cy young on the other hand is more of an award that is based on individual stats, A pitcher could for example go 30-0 and his team could have a W/L of 30-132. Freddie Freeman, Justin Upton are pretty hot right now.
Kemp has the numbers to back up mvp on a losing team. He’s top 5 in hr and leads the league in rbis with a BA over .300. Not to mention he is on pace for 40/40 this year
Kershaw will have a tough time beating Halladay, and Kemp will have to overcome the fact that he’s on a losing team, but both have a legitimate shot, and both could win without controversy.
Well King Felix did beat Sabathia last year so it could happen.
I’d like to think it could happen. It’d sure be a bright spot to an otherwise lackluster year for this team.
As of right now, sure they’re both in the running. It’s still early. Let’s look at the numbers a month from now.
I agree, still a bit early to talk about this. It wasn’t that long ago we were talking about Ethier and the Triple Crown. Things certainly change quickly. But I do agree with Thomas about the merits of these awareds. An MVP has to be a difference maker; it is hard to imagine how much worse things could be if Kemp were not having the monster year he is having.
It is NOT too early to talk about this. The season is winding down and these two are clearly frontrunners for those trophies. The MVP is about the best player in the league, not the team they are on.
A Wolff at the door?
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Speculation is that Lew Wolff, owner of the Oakland A’s, wishes to buy the Dodgers ( http://www.businessinsider.com/lew-wolff-purchase-los-angeles-dodgers-2011-8 ). The possibility was even brought up of contracting the A’s franchise to allow Lew to buy the team.
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By the way, Lew Wolff was a fraternity buddy of the jerk that got us into this McCourt Mess in the first place, Bud Selig. So who wants Selig’s legacy to remain with OUR Dodgers long after he’s left the Commissioner’s seat?
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Not me.
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HELL NO not me.
Thanks for the new thread, Josh. I’m with Sparkleplenty…if they could both win, it would be a bright spot in this season. I’d be happy with one of them winning!
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Both Kemp & Kershaw (K&K) are doing great. I always knew that Kershaw was going to shine and Kemp had the power! Keep it up boys! Now we need for the rest of the team to join them for a Dodger Victory! Let’s go Dodgers!
Perhaps my lack of enthusiasm over this topic at the moment is because even with the tremendous season Kershaw and Kemp are having, the Dodgers are still a ways away from being even a .500 team.
It’s seldom that teams having poor seasons have an MVP and or CY Young award winner. But it’s happened. I think it was Steve Carlton who did it for a last place team. Won the Cy Young award.
I was so happy to see Kuroda get a win last night. He’s been pitching marvelously without much run support. He didn’t get much last night but he did the only thing he could to get a win and that was not allow the opposing team to score.
Oh incidentally , Hi Everybody.
I’m hoping that Lilly can keep the ball down and not give up too many homeruns, tonight. I don’t know how they can speed up his delivery to the plate to stop the Pards from stealing too many bases. Maybe I’m worrying for nothing and he can somehow pull out another win.
GO DODGERS!!!!!!!!!
Ghost town in here. Go Dodgers!
I really do not get Loney. When that group came up, he looked like the best hitter among them. Not many homers, but gap power and 85-90 rbi’s would do. So what happened? Beats me, but I would not give up on him yet. NO WAY!!! would I give him a raise. Offer him the same money, a pat on the back, IF he agreed to play winter ball and figure this out. It might work. But you might also think he and Mattingly, being similar, would have figured it out by now. Still, I’d give him another shot.
Guess who the Mariners are calling up today? Any guesses Ned? Anything new with the fodder that you got for TR? Do you think that Ferder whatever his name is will ever learn to hit? How you keep your job I don’t know. My best guess is that you have pictures of Frankrupt and his sons with farm animals.
Am I understanding correctly, that MLB (selig) and the Dodgers (Mcbroke) have reached a 150M agreement, blessed by Bankruptcy court, that includes that 60M of the 150M must go to the highbridge fund that Mcbroke intially borrowed from, thus leaving 90M for the team, and what is worse is all expenses now must be approved by the bankruptcy court?
DAMN, and this does not get rid of Mcbroke, he is not forced to sell. Jaime where are you?
I have to believe at some point, maybe as early as November, after the World Series, that MLB will blow out McCourt, based on the “best interest of baseball” clause, if nothing else. That this thing keeps dragging and postponing and dragging and postponing is making lawyers absolutely rich…and fans disgusted and depressed. Yeah, I know sports is the “toy department,” but it’s hard to even stomach the team these days. I used to hope McCourt would sell and get his price. Now I hope he has the rugged pulled out and takes a financial bath. He and his harpie ex. The Dodgers were never intended to be a piggy bank passed on to his thieving kids.
I hope and pray you are right, kpookie!
Clearly Frank knew filing for bankruptcy would give him an edge up on MLB against attempts to remove him as owner. I think he believes he will prevail and has decided to fight the battle regardless of the cost or consequence. He also keeps Jamie at bay at the same time. How either one of them will every pay off the lawyers is beyond me. So as much as I would like Frank and Jamie out of the picture, I am afraid we may be stuck with this mess for longer than you think.
Bill Dwyre was the sports editor for the LA Times for 25 years before he “retired”. He has since been a contributing columnist when the mood strikes him. It struck him today with a column that any one of a number of us could have written:
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Here’s a little of it:
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“The Dodgers are a couple of years and a couple of great players away from being the Dodgers again. But not under McCourt ownership. For the fans, if not yet in the courts, that’s over. The fat lady sang a long time ago.
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“He has passed the point of no return. His desire to maintain the Dodgers shows a startling lack of realism. He is not wanted here anymore. Many of his customers won’t be if he is the owner. He has lost them. Image is reality, and McCourt’s image is irreversible. He is fighting to get back into the Colosseum so he can be with the Christians.
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“Even Frank McCourt should not have to live surrounded by the venom that currently exists. One of the comments from a fan in reaction to a recent Times story on a McCourt legal proceeding said it was unfortunate that McCourt “can’t just step in front of a bus.”
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“Kenny Rogers sang some good advice. You need to know when to hold ‘em and know when to fold ‘em. There have to be a couple of million dollars left after all the smoke clears in this — the more quickly the better — that McCourt could use to find a nice house on a hill in Idaho, or maybe Italy.
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“With that gesture, Dodgers’ fans might find some gratitude in their hearts.
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“But forgiveness? Never.”
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http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-dwyre-frank-mccourt-20110806,0,5892585.column
It’d be great, but I don’t think It’ll happen, both have chances to win the prices, but for Kemp it’s so difficult because he ain’t in a Playoff team, maybe if we see a miracle and the Dodgers pass to the postseason he’ll win the MVP, but it’s tough. Meanwhile Kershaw has a real shot at the Cy Young award because there are examples of pitchers in loosing teams winning the award, but he has a tough contender in Halladay, but we’ll see. Good luck to KKKKKKKKKershaw and Mr. #BEASTMODE