Comments on: The 2009 AL MVP Debate: Mauer vs. Jeter

By: MK

MK — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 04:40:00 +0000

OK, so I’ve read all the comments, and here’s the bottom line…Derek Jeter is BY FAR the MOST “VALUABLE” PLAYER on anyone’s roster in MLB, period! He does everything for his team…he consistently has the most Plate Appearances in Baseball year-in, year-out, he’s the CATALYST of his team’s offense…he’s the “CAPTAIN”…and he LEADS every day, period, by example, both on and off the field. He’s the quintessential professional, and he had a truly remarkable season. Had it not been for Matsui’s explosion in WS Game-# 6, one could easily see Jeter as the Series MVP. He was and is the AL MVP, not because of numbers (which are remarkable for a Shortstop, BTW), but because without him in the lineup daily, the Yankees do NOT win the AL East, do not clinch home field advantage (which proved a very important reason *WHY* they won it all this year), and likely win 10-15 less games…which could’ve knocked them out of the playoffs altogether. Joe Mauer *IS* a tremendous player, and was the MVP of a barely .500 team that got hot AND lucky by Detroit going into a 2-week funk that cost them the Central Division. Had Detroit won, would we be arguing Cabrera vs. Jeter? Hmmmm…I wonder. Point is, that Captain Clutch *WAS* clutch all season, and was the main reason WHY the Yankees won it all. With that as an argument, which to me is the very essence of being the most “valuable” (making your team into a CHAMPION), hands down it’s Derek Jeter…enough said!

P.S…I believe someone else said it…but in crunch time “head-to-head”, it was JETER who outshined MAUER in the ALDS…case in point!

By: Cookie Puss

Cookie Puss — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:23:08 +0000

It’s seriously crazy that Mauer is still even being considered and or talked as a candidate for AL MVP. Where has Mauer been the last month???……playing golf!

I think that answers the question

By: Joe

Joe — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 02:36:52 +0000

In my opinion, the AL MVP comes down to 3 players …Mauer, Jeter, and Cabrera. All 3 had truly exceptional years…it seems like Jeter always got the hit when the Yankees needed him to….Mauer was just the toughest out in baseball…and Cabrera put up triple crown numbers….so, as a Yankee fan, and as seeing Jeter deserved an MVP award in the past but didn’t get one…I’ll still have to vote for Mauer because he was the best hitter in baseball for the 2009 season…

By: TheRyan

TheRyan — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 07:19:40 +0000

Derek Jeter deserves to win, the twins already stole one mvp away from him, they better not steal another one! Jeter lead his team to the world series! Jeter swept mauer on the 1st round of the playpoffs!

By: 2009 NL MVP: Pujols vs. Hanley | Upper Deck Blog

2009 NL MVP: Pujols vs. Hanley | Upper Deck Blog — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 22:22:36 +0000

[...] week, I made a case for Mauer deserving the AL MVP more than Derek Jeter. Judging by responses on our blog and the Upper Deck Facebook page, I’d say most of you agree [...]

By: Rich

Rich — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 02:44:46 +0000

SHUT UP YOU DARE ASK SAY IT DEREK JETER

By: Gellman

Gellman — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 00:14:26 +0000

The fact that this is even being discussed among baseball circles is ridiculous. Mauer leads the league in EVERY meaningful category and deserves to be the MVP hands down. They say that Jeter deserves to win because he hasnt before, im sure even he disagrees with that. Mauer has 160 points in OPS alone on Jeter, and as Toby said, is doing it as a catcher.

As for the previous commenter, there actually is a stat that shows a player’s value in baseball, multiple stats to be exact. The first VORP, or value over replacement player, which is usually deemed the benchmark for players’ value to their team. In that category, Mauer is blowing everyone away, Jeter isnt top 10. In WARP, which is wins above replacement player, mauer is again ahead by a mile. When you think of win share percentage, or the amount of times a player contributes to a win for their team, mauer has such astronomical stats it isnt even a contest.

Jeter is having a good season, no doubt, but the fact that he is competing with Mauer is against everything baseball stands for. Mauer’s season is one of the best EVER, not just this year. That says something.

Since I know that someone is going to come on here and say that the Yankees have the best record in baseball, look who Jeter is playing with, versus who Mauer plays with. MVP is for most valuable PLAYER not most valuable TEAM. Jeter is not the only Yankee.

By: Jeff P.

Jeff P. — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0000

What they need to do is rename the award to some kind of a “best player” award rather than this “most valuable” baloney. Who is “more valuable” is so much more subjective, and it would take into account things that are not in control of the player. Does it mean Mauer is more valuable to the Twins than Jeter is to the Yankees? Does it mean that Mauer is more valuable to the Twins than Jeter would be to the Twins? Does it mean that Mauer would be more valuable to the Yankees than Jeter is to the Yankees? There’s no definition of most valuable and no standards associated with the voting. The Twins are barely a .500 team so there’s definitely an argument that can be made that Jeter is more responsible for the Yankees being 40 games over .500 than Mauer is for the Twins being two games over .500. There’s also an argument in Mauer’s favor going the other way instead. But because MLB stupidly and stubbornly insists on such a vague application of its most presitigious individual award, it ends up doing nothing but devaluing the award itself.