IAL announces 2010 Awards and All-League Team

The Illowa APBA League announces its 2010 All-League awards!

First, congratulations goes out to Chicago Champion manager Tedd Mallasch (left) who won the Dale Smith Memorial Manager of the Year award.  Mallasch for all of his successes throughout the IAL history, won 100 games for the first time in 2010 with 102. 

Despite not leading any offensive category in the IAL and not hitting over .300, Twin City Thunderchicken Albert Pujols came home with the 2010 MVP.  It was his third MVP award and second in as many years. 

Twenty-one wins helped Chicago Champion starter Matt Cain win the 2010 IAL Cy Young.  He compiled a 2.81 ERA with 5 shutouts for the year.

With 44 saves and 1.77 ERA, Kentucky Kernels reliever Andrew Bailey won both the Rookie of the Year and Fireman of the Year. 

Two players won All-League unanimously.  Moline Upperdeckers catcher Joe Mauer and Northside Hitmen secondbaseman Chase Utley won the favor of all ten managers. 

Congrats to all!

Here was the results of the ballot:

Hall of Fame Candidate: Mike Piazza

This is the fourth in a series of articles about candidates for the Illowa League Hall of Fame.

Now we move on to the first player in our series who seems like a real slam-dunk first ballot Hall of Famer.  Over 15 years, Mike Piazza was the best offensive catcher in the IAL by a long stretch.  He stepped into a key role immediately with the Posse, hitting 22 homers and driving in 83 runs as a rookie in 1994, and stayed dominant for the first decade of his career – after which he was merely very good, hitting 23 homers with a .272 batting average in his second-to-last season in 2007.

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Hall of Fame Candidate: Kenny Lofton

This is the third in a series of articles about candidates for the Illowa League Hall of Fame.

It’s always difficult to predict how leadoff hitters will do in IAL Hall of Fame voting.  Kenny Lofton was one of the best for about six or seven years, but like Craig Biggio and Shawn Green before him in this series, his period of dominance was brief.  Lofton played 16 seasons in the IAL, but only played in more than 140 games five times, all in the first seven seasons of his career.  He ranks first all-time in triples, with 113, second all-time in stolen bases with 652 (over 200 behind Tim Raines) fell just short of 2,000 hits (ranking 24th all-time with 1,983), and scored 1,233 runs (also ranking him 24th). [more after the jump]

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Hall of Fame Candidate: Shawn Green

This is the second in a series of articles on candidates for the Illowa League Hall of Fame.

Shawn Green played 13 seasons in the Ilowa League, splitting time between the Bunchies.  He had a slow start to his career, not really breaking out and playing full-time until his fourth season, 1999, when he hit 36 homers, stole 34 bases, and scored 121 runs.  That started a streak of eight seasons where he played in at least 152 games, scoring and driving in 100+ runs four times.  His best season was 2002, when he hit .295/.363/.589 with 46 homers, 24 steals, 135 runs scored, and 130 RBI.  After 2006 he faded fast, and after two seasons as a part timer, retired. [more after the jump]

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Hall of Fame Candidate: Craig Biggio

This is the first in a series of articles about candidates for the Illowa League Hall of Fame.

Craig Biggio came into the IAL in the expansion draft of 1997, taken by the State Street Sluggers.  He was immediately dealt to the Aurora (now Three Rivers) Gamblers.  Despite missing what would have been the first eight seasons of his career if he had been drafted when first eligible (probably 1989) he played 11 excellent seasons, exclusively playing for the Gamblers.

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2010 Hall of Fame Voting

I’ve been going over the Hall of Fame for the 2010 ballot, and it looks like this year will be a good one! Eligible players for this year include, among hitters, Craig Biggio, Jose Cruz, Jr., Juan Encarnacion, Shawn Green, Kenny Lofton, Mike Piazza, and Jose Valentin. Among pitchers we have Roger Clemens, Bartolo Colon, Kelvim Escobar, Roberto Hernandez, and John Smoltz.

Biggio, Lofton, Piazza, Clemens, and Smoltz all would appear to have shots to make the Hall of Fame. It will be interesting to see how Clemens’ real world issues affect his Illowa voting.

Tedd has been bugging me about Tim Raines’ not being in the Hall, and so I have an idea that I’d like to share – for an old-timer’s “second chance.” Each manager can nominate 1 player that played on their team to be reconsidered by the voters. If they get no votes, they fall off the ballot. What do you think?

2009 IAL Awards

MVP Albert Pujols Firstbaseman, Twin Cities Thunderchickens Led league in hitting (.332), rbis (146), slugging (.670), and OBP (.435).  Also hit 42 homeruns and scored 121 runs with a 55/94 strikeout/walk ratio.

Cy Young and Left-handed Pitcher of the Year C.C. Sabathia Three Rivers Gamblers Was 2009’s only IAL 20-game winner with 22.  Led  league with a 2.74 ERA.   CC was six strikeouts away from the Triple Crown.  His 252 strikeouts was second behind Tim Lincecum’s 258.

Rookie of the Year Geovany Soto Catcher, Twin Cities Thunderchickens Soto’s 29 homeruns and 89 rbis were tops among rookies and were second on the Thunderchickens behind only Albert Pujols.

Fireman of the Year Mariano Rivera Molly Putts Marauders A unanimous choice, Rivera led all IAL relievers with 38 saves in 2009.  He walked only 4 batters in 69 innings pitched with a 1.96 ERA.

Right-handed Pitcher of the Year Tim Lincecum Chicago Champions Lincecum led the IAL in strikeouts with 258 and came within .003 of winning the ERA title with a 2.74 mark.  He won 17 and lost 6.

Manager of the Year Tedd Mallasch Chicago Champions Mallasch came away with the most important stat of them all.  99 wins.  That was eleven games more than any other managers won.  Congratulations, Tedd!

2009 IAL All-League Awards