Dodgers Dugout: It's awards week! Will any Dodgers win?

Assistant Sports Editor

Nov. 13, 2017 8 AM PT

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell and I have almost totally blocked out Game 7. Almost.

Awards

Now that the season is over, it’s time for the awards. The big four will be handed out this week, starting Monday, and the Dodgers have finalists in three of them. The awards will be announced on the MLB network at 3 p.m. PST each day. And remember, voting takes place before the playoffs, so what happened there will have no impact. The top three vote getters in each award have already been announced. Let’s take a look:

Rookie of the Year (Monday)

The one award the Dodgers are assured to win. Cody Bellinger is a lock and should be a unanimous winner. His competition is Josh Bell of the Pirates and Paul DeJong of the Cardinals. The stats:

Bellinger (1B): 132 games, .267/.352/.581, 26 doubles, 39 homers, 97 RBIs, 142 OPS+, 4.2 WAR.

Bell (1B): 159 games, .255/.334/.466, 26 doubles, 26 homers, 90 RBIs, 108 OPS+, 1.7 WAR.

DeJong (SS): 108 games, .285/.325/.532, 26 doubles, 25 homers, 65 RBIs, 121 OPS+, 2.7 WAR.

You might be able to make a case for DeJong because he plays a tougher defensive position (and he also can play second base), but he didn’t play in as many games as Bellinger. Plus, DeJong grades out as an average shortstop while Bellinger has Gold Glove potential at first. I think Bellinger is an easy choice.

AL winner: Aaron Judge, Yankees

Manager of the Year (Tuesday)

Dave Roberts had this award locked up until the Dodgers went through that swoon near the end of the season. I think that will give voters enough ammunition to vote for someone else, especially since Roberts won it last season and voters tend to not give it to the same person two years in a row. The last manager to do it was Bobby Cox with Atlanta in 2004-05.

Roberts’ competition here is Torey Lovullo of Arizona and Bud Black of Colorado. So, my easy prediction is that the winner will come out of the NL West. I think Lovullo will win.

If Lovullo does win, he will be the third different Arizona manager to win in the last 10 years. Bob Melvin won in 2007 and Kirk Gibson won in 2011.

AL winner: A.J. Hinch, Astros.

Cy Young Award (Wednesday)

This is really a two-man race between Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers and Max Scherzer of the Nationals, but let’s look at the numbers for all three finalists:

Kershaw: 18-4, 2.31 ERA, 175 IP, 202 K’s, 0.949 WHIP, 4.6 WAR, 3.07 FIP.

Scherzer: 16-6, 2.51 ERA, 200.2 IP, 268 K’s, 0.902 WHIP, 7.3 WAR, 2.90 FIP.

Stephen Strasburg (Nationals): 15-4, 2.52 ERA, 175.1 IP, 204 K’s, 1.015 WHIP, 6.5 WAR, 2.72 FIP.

What is FIP? It’s basically a pitcher’s ERA if you take defense out of the equation. Here’s an explanation.

Kershaw led the league in wins and ERA. Scherzer led in WHIP and strikeouts. Kershaw missed some time with injury, Scherzer didn’t. Most voters now wisely ignore W-L record when voting, so I’m not sure how Kershaw wins this. Scherzer was better this season, though they are both great pitchers.

And yes, I know some of you still believe W-L record is vitally important to judge a pitcher. But you’re wrong. Who’s the better pitcher, the guy who gives up one run in eight innings and loses 1-0 or the one who gives up three runs in five innings and wins 11-4? You have to look at the big picture when judging players based on stats, and when you look at the big picture, Scherzer comes out ahead here.

AL winner: Corey Kluber, Indians.

MVP (Thursday)

The Dodgers have no finalists here, but let’s look at the three finalists and make a prediction.

Paul Goldschmidt (Arizona): .297/.404/.563, 36 homers, 120 RBIs, 140 OPS+, 5.8 WAR.

Giancarlo Stanton (Miami): .281/.376/.631, 59 homers, 132 RBIs, 165 OPS+, 7.6 WAR.

Joey Votto (Cincinnati): .320/.454/.578, 36 homers, 100 RBIs, 168 OPS+, 7.5 WAR.

Winner: Stanton.

AL winner: Jose Altuve, Astros.

A bit of history

How sure am I that Bellinger will win? Enough to include this for your reading enjoyment: A look at every Dodgers Rookie of the Year winner.

Dodger Rookie of the Year winners

Jackie Robinson (1947)

Runners up: Larry Jansen (Giants), Spec Shea (Yankees)

Stats: .297/.383/.427/3.1 WAR

Other Honors: NL MVP in 1949, six-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1947-56

Last year in majors: 1956

Other teams played for: None.

In Hall of Fame? Yes

Don Newcombe (1949)

Runner up: Del Crandall (Braves)

Stats: 17-8, 3.17 ERA, 5.8 WAR

Other Honors: Cy Young Award (1956), MVP (1956), four-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1949-58

Last year in majors: 1960

Other teams played for: Cincinnati, Cleveland.

In Hall of Fame? No

Joe Black (1952)

Runners up: Hoyt Wilhelm (Giants), Dick Groat (Pirates), Eddie Mathews (Braves)

Stats: 15-4, 2.15 ERA, 4.2 WAR

Other Honors: None

With Dodgers: 1952-55

Last year in majors: 1957

Other teams played for: Cincinnati, Washington

In Hall of Fame? No

Jim Gilliam (1953)

Runners up: Harvey Haddix (Cardinals), Ray Jablonski (Cardinals)

Stats: .278/.383/.415/3.9 WAR

Other Honors: Two-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1953-66

Last year in majors: 1966

Other teams played for: None

In Hall of Fame? No

Frank Howard (1960)

Runners up: Pancho Herrera (Phillies), Art Mahaffey (Phillies)

Stats: .268/.320/.464/1.9 WAR

Other Honors: Four-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1958-64

Last year in majors: 1973

Other teams played for: Washington, Texas, Detroit

In Hall of Fame? No

Jim Lefebvre (1965)

Runners up: Joe Morgan (Astros), Frank Linzy (Giants)

Stats: .250/.337/.369/4.6 WAR

Other Honors: One-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1965-72

Last year in majors: 1972

Other teams played for: None

In Hall of Fame? No

Ted Sizemore (1969)

Runners up: Coco Laboy (Expos), Al Oliver (Pirates)

Stats: .271/.328/.342

Other Honors: None.

With Dodgers: 1969-70, 1976

Last year in majors: 1980

Other teams played for: Cardinals, Phillies, Cubs, Red Sox

In Hall of Fame? No

Rick Sutcliffe (1979)

Runners up: Jeffrey Leonard (Astros), Scot Thompson (Cubs)

Stats: 17-10, 3.46, 4.3 WAR

Other Honors: 1984 NL Cy Young, Three-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1976, 1978-81

Last year in majors: 1994

Other teams played for: Indians, Cubs, Orioles, Cardinals

In Hall of Fame? No

Steve Howe (1980)

Runners up: Bill Gullickson (Expos), Lonnie Smith (Phillies)

Stats: 7-9, 2.66, 17 saves, 0.5 WAR

Other Honors: One-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1980-83, 1985

Last year in majors: 1996

Other teams played for: Twins, Rangers, Yankees

In Hall of Fame? No

Fernando Valenzuela (1981)

Runners up: Tim Raines (Expos), Hubie Brooks (Mets)

Stats: 13-7, 2.48 ERA, 5.3 WAR

Other Honors: 1981 NL CY Young, six-time All Star, one-time Gold Glove

With Dodgers: 1981-90

Last year in majors: 1997

Other teams played for: Angels, Orioles, Phillies, Padres, Cardinals

In Hall of Fame? No

Steve Sax (1982)

Runners up: Johnny Ray (Pirates), Willie McGee (Cardinals)

Stats: .282/.335/.359/3.3 WAR

Other Honors: Five-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1981-88

Last year in majors: 1994

Other teams played for: Yankees, White Sox, A’s

In Hall of Fame? No

Eric Karros (1992)

Runners up: Moises Alou (Expos), Tim Wakefield (Pirates)

Stats: .257/.304/.426/0.4 WAR

Other Honors: None

With Dodgers: 1991-2002

Last year in majors: 2004

Other teams played for: Cubs, A’s

In Hall of Fame? No

Mike Piazza (1993)

Runners up: Greg McMichael (Braves), Jeff Conine (Marlins)

Stats: .318/.370/.561

Other Honors: 12-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1992-98

Last year in majors: 2007

Other teams played for: Marlins, Mets, Padres, A’s.

In Hall of Fame? Yes

Raul Mondesi (1994)

Runners up: John Hudek (Astros), Ryan Klesko (Braves)

Stats: .306/.333/.516/1.8 WAR

Other Honors: One-time All Star, two-time Gold Glove

With Dodgers: 1993-99

Last year in majors: 2005

Other teams played for: Blue Jays, Yankees, Diamondbacks, Pirates, Angels, Braves

In Hall of Fame? No

Hideo Nomo (1995)

Runners up: Chipper Jones (Braves), Quilvio Veras (Marlins)

Stats: 13-6, 2.54 ERA, 4.2 WAR

Other Honors: One-time All Star

With Dodgers: 1995-98, 2002-04

Last year in majors: 2008

Other teams played for: Mets, Brewers, Tigers, Red Sox, Devil Rays, Royals.

In Hall of Fame? No

Todd Hollandsworth (1996)

Runners up: Edgar Renteria (Marlins), Jason Kendall (Pirates)

Stats: .291/.348/.437

Other Honors: None

With Dodgers: 1995-2000

Last year in majors: 2006

Other teams played for: Rockies, Rangers, Marlins, Cubs, Braves, Indians, Reds

In Hall of Fame? No

Corey Seager (2016)

Runners up: Trea Turner (Nationals), Kenta Maeda (Dodgers)

Stats: .308/.365/.512

Other Honors: Two-time All Star

With Dodgers: 2016-17

Last year in majors: Still playing

Other teams played for: None

In Hall of Fame? Not eligible

Cody Bellinger (2017)

Runners up: Josh Bell (Pirates), Paul DeJong (Cardinals)

Stats: .267/.352/.581

Other Honors: One-time All Star

With Dodgers: 2017

Last year in majors: Still playing

Other teams played for: None

In Hall of Fame? Not eligible

Shameless plug dept.

If you missed my appearance with former Dodgers GM Ned Colletti last month, I’ve got good news: You’ll have another chance to miss it this month. I will be moderating a discussion with Ned about this year’s Dodgers and decisions he made during his tenure with the team on Nov. 27 at 7 p.m. at the South Pasadena Public Library Community Room. Ned will also be signing copies of his book, “The Big Chair.” And if you bring a copy of my book, I’ll be more than happy to sign it and meet the one person who bought it!

The library is at 1100 Oxley St. For more information go here, or call (626) 403-7332.

And finally

Dodgers Dugout will be back Nov. 20 with a look at the Dodger roster and what to expect in the offseason. The early winter meetings are this week in Florida, but nothing major usually happens until the second set of winter meetings in December. If the Dodgers make a move, we’ll talk about it Nov. 20.

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me and follow me on Twitter: @latimeshouston.