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AL MVP: 1) Mike Trout .323 AVG, 27 HR, 97 RBI, 33 SB, .432 OBP, .557 SLG, 10.4 WAR 2) Miguel Cabrera  .348 AVG, 44 HR, 137 RBI, 103 R, .442 OBP, .636 SLG 3) Josh Donaldson  .301 AVG, 24 HR, 93 RBI, 89 R, .384 OBP, .499 SLG, 7.7 WAR NL MVP: 1) Andrew McCutchen .317 AVG, 21 HR, 84 RBI, 97 R, 27 SB, .404 OBP, .508 SLG, 8.2 WAR 2) Paul Goldschmidt .302 AVG, 36 HR, 125 RBI, 103 R, .401 OBP, .551 SLG, 6.4 WAR 3) Clayton Kershaw 16-9 W-L, 1.83 ERA, 236 K, 0.92 WHIP, 0.4 HR/9, 2.0 BB/9, 4.46 K/BB AL Cy Young: 1) Max Scherzer 21-3 W-L, 2.90 ERA, 214.1 IP, 240 K, 0.97 WHIP, 0.8 HR/9, 2.4 BB/9, 4.29 K/BB 2) Chris Sale 11-14 W-L, 3.07 ERA, 214.1 IP, 226 K, 1.07 WHIP, 1.0 HR/9, 1.7 BB/9, 4.91 K/BB 3) Hisashi Iwakuma 14-6 W-L. 2.66 ERA, 219.2 IP, 185 K, 1.00 WHIP, 1.0 HR/9, 1.7 BB/9, 4.4 K/BB NL Cy Youn...

Photo Credit: Matt Slocum/AP For every Bryce Harper or Mike Trout that become superstars in the Major Leagues before they can legally have a celebratory drink, there are a bunch of Matt Daley types. While everyone dreams of signing a lucrative seven figure contract before their first professional game, there are people that are forced to do it the hard way. Of all those who are lingering in the minor leagues for years, most never fulfill their childhood dreams of playing in a big league uniform. Only a handful will be given the opportunity. Daley is living proof that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Growing up in Flushing, Daley was a fan of the Mets. That was during the time the team was in a renaissance period after the acquisition of Mike Piazza. The team ultimately lost to the ...

One of the things I’ll never forget about my dad was his way of motivating me to be the best baseball player I could be. Among his most common phrases was, “If you wanna be the best, you gotta beat the best!” To me, there was no doubt he was referring to Marcus Stroman when he said “the best.” His name was the one in almost every conversation regarding the best players around when I was playing. He was ahead of the competition when he was as tall as everyone, and still was ahead of it even when his height put him at a considerable disadvantage. The 5’8″ native of Medford won the Carl Yastrzemski Award in 2008, which is awarded to the top baseball player in Suffolk County and followed that up by winning the Paul Gibson Award the following year which...

The NL MVP has no clear-cut winner, with most of the favorites either succumbing to injuries, being a part of a mediocre club or lack of standout statistics. Here is my top three for this week, which could change significantly in a week. 1) Andrew McCutchen Stats: 127 G, .321/.399/.507/.907 OPS,  17 HR, 73 RBI, 60 BB, 81 K, 26/35 SB After years of elevating his level of play despite suffering through a string of sub .500 seasons in Pittsburgh, McCutchen has finally taken the Pirates to the level of a legitimate championship team. He is their most versatile player by a wide margin and is an outstanding defensive center fielder. The only knock is that his offensive numbers are not as gaudy as some of the other contenders, but I give him the nod because he is the closest thing to a complete p...

With about six weeks remaining in the MLB season, most of the key awards are becoming extremely tight. This will add intrigue to a season that will feature little-or-no-drama in many of the division races unlike the past two seasons. Here is my take on the AL MVP. AL MVP: 1) Miguel CabreraStats: .360 AVG, .452 OBP, .689 SLG, 40 HR, 120 RBI, 89 R, 306 TB, 72 BB Cabrera looked at his 2012 numbers and scoffed at it. He took a phenomenal season and added creatine to it. He does it with hand-eye coordination that is equivalent to Albert Pujols which enables him to swing at pitches on his fists and deposit it into the left-field bleachers. I have been a huge Trout supporter because of his superior all-around skills but if you take Cabrera off the Tigers they are not nearly the team they are. He ...

Seven years since the apex and five years into the stadium the fans have yet to experience anything close to prosperity, aside from Johan Santana’s no-hitter on June 1, 2012 and Matt Harvey’s All-Star Game start on July 16 of this year. While not all teams are able to create a new identity immediately as the 2008 Rays did by changing their name, logo and uniform, it was realistic to expect a competitive team in the near future. Fans have even lowered their expectations considerably during this time. No longer is the playoffs the only satisfying result, now simply fielding an “exciting .500 team” is worth it to the Citi faithful. It appears, however, that good fortune is just around the corner.  With a rock-solid ace like Matt Harvey under control the team can build ...

In a move that is sure to bring mixed feelings to Yankee fans in the area, the Boston Red Sox have signed Bobby Lanigan to a minor-league deal. Of course, a great deal of pride comes along with having a graduate of Adelphi University given the opportunity to further advance his career after stalling in the Minnesota Twins organization. At the same time, however, Yankee fans would prefer not to root for their most-hated rivals in Boston. Nevertheless, the 26-year-old native of Staten Island appeared to be on the fast track to the big leagues in 2011 when he began Spring Training with the big league club. Unfortunately, he struggled and spent the season with Double-A New Britain while posting a record of 8-9 with a 4.45 ERA. The Twins organization has long been respected for their developmen...

Photo is credited to J. Conrad Williams Jr. Despite Mariano Rivera receiving a hero’s welcome upon entrance into the All-Star game, which was won by the American League 3-0, Joe Nathan received the save. Nathan, a graduate of Stony Brook, has been one of the more unheralded pitchers in Major League Baseball throughout his career which began in 1999 with San Francisco. Now 14 years later, Nathan is a six-time All Star closer that has compiled 328 saves with a solid 2.80 ERA in 688 appearances. Nathan struck out the first two batters he faced, Matt Carpenter and Andrew McCutchen, before yielding an opposite field double to Paul Goldschmidt of the Arizona Diamondbacks. With the tieing run on deck, he got the dangerous Bronx-native, Pedro Alvarez, to pop out to second base to end the gam...

There were zero Long Islanders drafted on the first day of the draft, which included the top two rounds. That was not a shock. The next day was different. Hofstra’s Bryan Verbitsky was selected in the third round by San Diego. In a bit of a surprise, Stephen Woods of Half Hollow Hills East was picked by Tampa Bay in the sixth round. Woods, 18, compiled a 5-1 record, fired back-to-back no-hitters, struck out 90, yielded only 12 hits, walked 23 and posted a miniscule 0.63 ERA. The chips began to fall after that.  James Lomangino of St. John’s went Oakland with the 431st overall pick. Lomangino, a graduate of Connetquot in 2009, attended Suffolk for one year prior to transferring to St. John’s where he became the closer in his sophomore season. Also selected by Oakland with ...

Hofstra right-handed pitcher Bryan Verbitsky was selected in the third round of the 2013 MLB draft by the San Diego Padres. “So grateful and blessed to be a part of the San Diego Padres organization!! Dream come True!” Verbitsky had a solid junior season as he compiled a 3-4 record with a 2.66 ERA in 44 innings, accumulating 51 strikeouts and limiting the opponents to 27 hits and 10 walks. He really put himself on the map last summer by making the All-Star team in the prestigious Cape Cod league. Those who follow high school baseball are familiar with him dating back to 2007 when he helped Island Trees to the playoffs as a freshman. That year was the first time I watched him pitch, as I matched up against him in a summer league game which ended in a 1-1 tie through 7 innings. V...

Farmingdale 1 @ Ithaca 4 Coming off a big win in the opening round of the New York State Regional, #3 Farmingdale State Rams went up against #1 seed Ithaca on Thursday afternoon. They would have to face the incredibly tough pitching staff of the Bombers. Ithaca’s four starting pitchers on the year compiled a perfect combined record, going 31-0 with an ERA of 2.83, and would be sending out John Prendergast out to face the Rams. Jorge Ruiz started off the top of the third with a double for Farmingdale and later scored on an error by the shortstop. Ithaca answered back with three more runs in the bottom on the third. Kitt Cameron struggled to last only 2.2 innings, but the bullpen held Ithaca to just one more run in the bottom of the seventh. John Prendergast though did not surrender an...

It is rather ironic that the two players that I interviewed early in the season both were named All-Americans in 2013. Call it what you want, I call it impeccable talent evaluations. Dillon McNamara became the 14th Adelphi baseball player in the program’s decorated history to be named All-American, and the first since Robert Nixon went 11-2 in 2011. David Zilnicki became the first player (Tom Heeman was selected in 2009 but had it stripped after an NCAA investigation) in the history of Farmingdale State. McNamara was nearly spotless this season as the closer for the Panthers. The 6’5″ Staten Island native tossed 32 innings, struck out 42 and allowed one measly. Even that run wouldn’t have scored if not for a blown call by the second base umpire in the final game of ...