Projo Sox Blog

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

It's that time of the year in the baseball world when individual players are honored for their accomplishments on the field.

Starting with the American and National League Rookie of the Year awards, which were announced on Monday afternoon, the Baseball Writers' Association of America will announce its string of honors over the next week.

Oakland Athletics closer Andrew Bailey won the A.L. ROY, while Florida Marlins outfielder Chris Coghlan took home the NL award. The Cy Young, Manager of the Year and MVP awards for both leagues will follow and for the first time in recent years a Red Sox player or manager is not in the mix.

No doubt it's a gratifying day for the individual award winner when Jack O'Connell, the BBWAA's secretary-treasurer, calls to inform the person of their accolade. When Bailey, a New Jersey native and Connecticut resident, received his call on Monday morning, he thought it was a crank phone call.

Each winner responds differently to the announcement, but there is one common theme from most winners, especially from the rookies, that is a testament to the tradition of the awards themselves and the individuals who win them.

Most, if not all, are humble, appreciative and go out of their way to thank their teammates, calling the individual award a team effort.

"My numbers I put up this year is something I can build off for next year and try to repeat or do better," Bailey said. "For me, my goal is long term and obviously winning this award is a complete honor. It's a stepping stone for the future of my career and the Oakland Athletics."

Of course there's a little bit of ego involved. There has to be because pro athletes wouldn't succeed if there wasn't. When Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia won the Rookie of the Year in 2007, he had similar comments about his teammates, winning and the future, which showed how an award of this prestige can turn even a constant trash-talking player into a modest human being.

"You definitely want to make an impact your first year in the big leagues and establish yourself as an every day player - a good player," Pedroia said the day he won. "Once the season carried on I started to have success, and the only thing I cared about was helping the team win because that was our ultimate goal."

The Sox did win the World Series in 2007 and Pedroia followed up with the A.L. MVP in 2008. He constantly talks about the importance of winning is greater than any individual award. He would rather win the World Series than anything else.

In Pedroia's case, he started the 2007 season on a horrid pace for almost the first two months. He turned it around and eventually won the ROY. During that magical season he said he never once thought about the award. He was just concentrating on the job at hand.

Bailey had a similar mindset this season while he was mowing down opposing hitters and holding them to a .167 average.

"Personally, it wasn't something that I thought about," he said. "The media and all my teammates would bring it up, especially at the end of the year I would hear something about it every day. You just have to put it in the back of your mind. You're out there doing a job and you can't be out there thinking, 'I need to strike this guy out,' or, 'not give up a run because the Rookie of the Year voting depends on it. You can't think that way. You have to go in [and concentrate] on each batter and each pitch and get the job done."

Bailey put up some impressive numbers, including 26 saves with a 1.84 ERA. He walked only 24 batters and struck out 91 in 83 1/3 innings of work for the A's.

Looking back on the season and the impact both Bailey and ROY runner-up, the Rangers' Elvis Andrus, had against the Red Sox, it was obvious both were talented and well-deserving of the award. Bailey was 0-0 with 4.50 ERA and two saves in three appearances (four innings) against the Sox.

Andrus, a very talented shortstop dominated the Red Sox in the eight games he started against Boston, posting a .346 batting average (9-for-26) with 1 double, 1 triple, 2 RBI, 5 runs and 5 stolen bases. Defensively, too, Andrus was very solid.

It was a disappointing season for the Red Sox when their Fall Classic hopes were erased when they were swept by the Angels in the ALDS. No player in Boston won a Gold Glove this season and only free-agent outfielder Jason Bay won a Silver Slugger Award for the Sox.

With the remaining BBWAA awards to be handed out over the next few days, the Red Sox will likely be kept off the winners list. Still, it's fun time of baseball's offseason to recognize those individuals who made history for their accomplishments.

 Tags  Andrew Bailey Baseball Writers' Association of America Dustin Pedroia Rookie of the Year

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