AL MVP-Dustin Pedroia??!!

The first thing I whispered to myself when I saw the small headline "Pedroia wins AL MVP" can be shortened into three letters: WTF??!!

I'll admit this-I haven't been the most informed person when it comes to the baseball offseason. But the choice of Dustin Pedroia for AL MVP came as a huge shock. He's a fantastic player, for sure, and that'll probably be true for a long time to come. However, is he the most valuable player in the entire American League? A definite no!

First off, Dustin Pedoia plays on the Boston Red Sox, a team that has quite a few valuable players. Had he been the second baseman for a team like the Florida Marlins, Pedroia's impact would have been much, much greater. If you take away Pedroia's contributions to a mediocre team, it would make an insurmountable difference. The Red Sox are not a mediocre team. In fact, there are few batting line ups as relentless as Boston's. Simply put, Dustin Pedroia's contributions to the Red Sox, a team that also employs Kevin Youkilis, Mike Lowell, and Jonathan Papelbon, were far less than that of a true leader on a less mainstream team.

In all due respect, Pedroia is an amazing hitter, who sprays the ball, hits for average, possesses some pop, and makes the pitcher work. His D is also quite impressive. But that can be said for a lot of players. On a team like the Red Sox, he is just not a stand out. In order to be the MVP, a player must be outstanding, dazzling fans on the field, but also an irreplaceable figure in the clubhouse. In the AL, it's not Dustin Pedroia that does those two things the best.

Now that the criteria has been set. Here's a list of players who deserve the award more than the Red Sox second baseman.

1. Justin Morneau

Morneau came in a distant second. The margin of victory (60 points) for Pedroia was also quite shocking. At the end of the regular season, I honestly thought that the AL MVP race was going to be a toughie for the writers. Perhaps, it'd be a very close vote. But as it turned out, that was not the case.

Morneau's power numbers and RBI stats were much more impressive than Pedroia's. In fact, Morneau drove in 50 more runs than Pedroia, a margin that could have easily won a dozen more games for any ballclub.

As well, Morneau plays for the Minnesota Twins, a city where baseball sellouts don't occur on a nightly basis. He is the undisputed leader in the clubhouse there and has a slickly deft glove as well.

2. Carlos Quentin

Ask yourself a simple question. Where would the Chicago White Sox be without Carlos Quentin? They probably would not have had the opportunity to play some October baseball without Carlos' help. He was solid on offense all season long, providing timely hits when the White Sox needed them

He dazzled and shined on the field and was a fan favourite. Quentin really helped to carry the White Sox through much of the season. He is undoubtedly a recognized face in Chicago and definitely of insurmountable value to his club.

3. Cliff Lee

I know Lee won the Cy Young, but there is no rule that says a player can't win two awards in one season. The stats Lee posted on the mound were just as impressive as any hitter in the league. His contributions and his value simply came from doing a different job.

The Cleveland Indians won a total of 81 games during the regular season. Cliff Lee posted 22 individual victories. If you can't do the math, Cliff Lee was credited with over 25% of all Cleveland wins. Can you say that for Dustin Pedroia?

His dazzle-razzle ERA of 2.54 was also best in the majors. Again, the main question is, where would the Cleveland Indians be without Cliff Lee? He was the focus of their team, the ace, the fan fave, all of which qualify him for this prestigious award.

While the selection of Dustin Pedroia was somewhat ridiculous in my opinion, the winners of other major end of season awards were deserving of their honours. For the most part, the writers voted for the most meriting candidate.

On that note, this Pedroia mistake is forgivable.

-D