NewsAaron Award finalists unveiled
Vote for a chance to win World Series Game 4 tickets
By Mark Newman / MLB.com
09/16/09 12:01 AM ET
Fans cast more than a million votes exclusively at MLB.com this past month to narrow down the list of Hank Aaron Award nominees to one finalist per club, and now comes the hardest part -- determining one American League and one National League winner for the 11th annual presentation of this Major League Baseball honor presented by Sharp.There is a trip to Game 4 of the 2009 World Series riding on the outcome, and not just for the two offensive superstars who will be presented with this important MLB individual award before that game. Vote now through Sept. 30 in this final round to be entered for a chance to win a trip for two to Game 4, as well as access to the on-field ceremony and news conference.
National League finalists include: Justin Upton of the D-backs, Chipper Jones of the Braves, Derrek Lee of the Cubs, Brandon Phillips of the Reds, Todd Helton of the Rockies, Hanley Ramirez of the Marlins, Miguel Tejada of the Astros, Andre Ethier of the Dodgers, Prince Fielder of the Brewers, David Wright of the Mets, Chase Utley of the Phillies, Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates, Adrian Gonzalez of the Padres, Pablo Sandoval of the Giants, Albert Pujols of the Cardinals and Ryan Zimmerman of the Nationals.
American League finalists include: Adam Jones of the Orioles, Jason Bay of the Red Sox, Jermaine Dye of the White Sox, Asdrubal Cabrera of the Indians, Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers, Billy Butler of the Royals, Torii Hunter of the Angels, Joe Mauer of the Twins, Derek Jeter of the Yankees, Kurt Suzuki of the A's, Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners, Evan Longoria of the Rays, Ian Kinsler of the Rangers and Aaron Hill of the Blue Jays.
Last year's winners were Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis and Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez -- neither of whom got past your first-round voting this time. The Hank Aaron Award was instituted in 1999 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of its namesake setting the all-time home run record, and at the time it was MLB's first new major piece of individual hardware in 30 years. It is the seventh consecutive year that fans have had a say in the voting, and this year, your role was expanded greatly -- first reducing 90 nominees down to 30, and now deciding which two players are the game's outstanding offensive performers in 2009.
"For the last 10 years, Major League Baseball has paid tribute to the spectacular career of one of our greatest players, Hank Aaron, through the Sharp presents the Hank Aaron Award," said John Brody, senior vice president, corporate sales & marketing, Major League Baseball Properties. "The new voting process will give our fans an even greater voice in selecting the best offensive players of the year."
"We are excited to give fans more involvement in the selection of this award, with the expansion on the voting process for this important honor," said Judah Zeigler, associate vice president, retail and consumer marketing, Sharp Electronics Corporation. "As presenting sponsor of this prestigious award, we look forward to the voting results as we recognize the most outstanding offensive performers in each league."
The Hank Aaron Award is not to be confused with the Most Valuable Player Awards voted on by the Baseball Writers' Association of America -- but it will be up to you to decide whether to factor in anything other than unbelievable offensive statistics. And do you go with monster power numbers such as those Pujols or Fielder have put up, or are you impressed by the purity of hits as seen in Mauer's summer-long MLB batting leadership or Ichiro's fresh MLB record of nine straight 200-hit seasons? Do you think like a fantasy baseball owner and go with someone like Hanley Ramirez or Miguel Cabrera?
Click the video icons next to each finalist's name, and then you will have a little extra education before hitting that all-important Submit button. By voting, you not only will be entered for a chance to go to the World Series, but also a chance to win a 52- or 46-inch AQUOS LED-TV. Come back and vote daily, as there is no one-click limit in the final round.
If you are looking for some advice on how to vote, then you might as well go straight to the award's namesake:
"This award ... was bestowed upon me many years ago, and I want to thank the Commissioner for doing it in perpetuity," Aaron said at a previous presentation. "The one thing I want to say about this award is that it goes further than just a ballplayer hitting and batting in runs. You look at this award and you say, 'What does it exemplify?' It exemplifies the fact that each one of these players meant so much to his team, not only hitting the home runs or batting in the runs, but simply manufacturing wins for their respective teams."
Fans began voting Aug. 19 to choose one person from among three nominees per club. Some of the decisions were easy and some were brutal. Some of your final choices were obvious and some definitely came as a surprise. But in every case, they reflected the voice of the people in each of those 30 fan markets -- the fans who follow their every move.
Here, just for a fun review, were some of the especially interesting fan decisions:
Past winners of the award include: Manny Ramirez and Sammy Sosa (1999); Carlos Delgado and Helton (2000); Alex Rodriguez and Barry Bonds (2001, 2002); Rodriguez and Pujols (2003); Ramirez and Bonds (2004); David Ortiz and Andruw Jones (2005); Jeter and Howard (2006); and Rodriguez and Fielder (2007).
A-Rod is tops on that list with four, followed by Bonds with three and Manny with a pair, but none of those three were able to pad those totals in 2009. A-Rod, who missed more than the first month of the season, was not nominated by the Yankees. Manny was suspended for 50 games after testing positive for a banned substance and Ethier out-voted teammates Matt Kemp and Casey Blake. Bonds has not played since 2007, leaving with a record 762 homers.
Helton, Pujols, Jeter and Fielder all have a chance to become two-time winners.
Sharp is in its third year of a multi-year sponsorship agreement, highlighted by Sharp AQUOS as the "Official High-Definition Television of Major League Baseball." Sharp is also the presenting sponsor of the AL and NL Player of the Month Awards.
Mark Newman is enterprise editor of MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
