10 more reasons to vote for MLB Awards

October 9th, 2016

As the process of elimination continues to decide a World Series champion, here are 10 more reasons to vote between now and Nov. 11 to help decide the Esurance MLB Awards:
1. Best Moment. Tears of joy as the Dodgers bid adieu to a broadcast legend, and tears of sadness as a home run was struck for a fallen teammate. A 3,000-hit chase, and warm sendoffs for key figures in the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry.
2. Best Fan Catch. If you snagged a foul ball, a homer, a ground-rule double or a BP toss this season, then congrats. As for the best of the best, you get to make a fellow fan famous. Saving your spouse with a barehanded grab is seriously worthy of some love, but this is going to be a tough one because you will identify. In fact, you may be a nominee.
3. Best Play, Offense. Remember when tripled and then topped that with a grand slam in the first inning? The other four nominees in this category all hit walkoffs: , , and .

4. Best Play, Defense., and showed crazy speed to rob hitters, threw a ball farther than most people can hit, and did his wall-balancing act for the second year in a row. Looking at arm strength, first step, max speed, route efficiency and distance covered, there will be ample Statcast™ data to help you make an educated decision.
5. Best Performance. If you like strikeouts, there was 's record-tying 20-K night and 's park-record 16 at Coors Field. If you like three-homer games, then consider matching Ted Williams by doing it twice in the same season -- or becoming the first to hit three homers and two doubles in one game. Combine power pitching and hitting, and you have nominated for eight strong innings backed by his own two homers.

6. Best Social Media Personality. Thor is also up for this award, and you may have liked or retweeted his competition. There's , who is content to let everyone else share his antics; and those Duke commencement selfies; and more nominations for Puig and Rizzo, the latter of whom co-authors the @grandparossy_3 phenomenon on Instagram.
7. Best Social Media Post. Scully and Syndergaard each lead the way with three nominations spanning these 10 new categories, including a pair for your consideration here. There was also Jose Ramirez's widely shared helmet GIF and 's best #beastmode shot as "ChewyG".

8. Best Player-Fan Interaction. Whether you earned a priceless pregame autograph, met your idol at a winter convention or traded a salute with your favorite All-Star during the parade on the way to Petco Park, you probably can relate to this category oh so well. Watch the videos of these five nominees and you'll get goosebumps. And, trust us, probably emotional.
9. Best Call, TV/Radio. You know how certain mind-blowing things happen during the season and you practically jump out of your chair and think: That better be nominated for an award later this year? Well, let's just start with hitting a home run, and how Gary Cohen and Ron Darling captured the disbelief. If only it were that simple, though. Could you ever imagine any broadcaster topping Scully's last call at home after 67 years? We'll see. There are a few other candidates that will offer you more food for thought, and fortunately we have all the videos to relive our feelings again right now.

10. Best Trending Topic. Colon was too big to contain in only that previous category, so you'll find him here as well. The Cubs and Yankees had everyone talking before the Trade Deadline, and no one can forget Stanton's record 61 clouts at the T-Mobile Home Run Derby.
These are the 10 newest categories, in no particular order, that have just been added to the voting that began Sept. 19 at MLB.com/awards, following the unveiling of the inaugural Esurance MLB Fans of the Year winners.
Best Postseason Moment nominees also will be added for your consideration, with nominees to be introduced after the Fall Classic.
Individual awards will go to the Best Major Leaguer in addition to the winners in categories such as: Best Hitter, Pitcher, Rookie, Defensive Player, Manager, Executive, Social Media Personality and Postseason Performer. Voting is well underway on some of those.
The Esurance MLB Awards annually honor Major League Baseball's greatest achievements as part of an industry-wide balloting process that includes five groups, each of which accounts for 20 percent of the overall vote: media, front-office personnel, retired MLB players, fans at MLB.com and Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) voters.
The MLB Awards are an all-inclusive program, encompassing the top players and performances from both the American and National Leagues from Opening Day through the end of the postseason.
Voting for the MLB Awards will remain open until 2 p.m. ET on Nov. 11 by visiting MLB.com/awards. Winners will be announced live on MLB Network and MLB.com on Nov. 18.