by Ken Rosenthal

Comment

Frankly, I would have been glad if Joe Mauer or Kevin Youkilis had won, too. The race this season was that close, and I won't lie — I was never comfortable with my vote.

Pedroia, the Red Sox's second baseman, is a personal favorite, a fierce competitor who was criticized more heavily by rival scouts as a minor leaguer than any player I recall.

He has developed into a wondrous all-around talent, winning a Gold Glove last season, stealing 20 bases in 21 attempts, hitting for power. The Red Sox even used him briefly in the cleanup spot, and he went a ridiculous 12-for-18.

Why then, did I pick Morneau, the Twins' first baseman?

As I wrote in late September, Morneau is the Twins' rock, to an even greater extent than the incomparable Mauer. I'm not sure any other player means more to his team.

Usually, I lean toward middle-of-the-diamond performers in MVP discussions. Morneau, though, was more of an offensive force than Mauer and Pedroia, though perhaps less of a force than Youkilis.

Here's the thing, though: Morneau appeared in all 163 Twins games. Mauer, who plays a more physically demanding position, was hardly a slouch, appearing in 146 (Pedroia played in 157 games, Youkilis 145).

While the MVP ballot states, "There is no clear-cut definition of what Most Valuable means," it also lists five criteria. The first is, "Actual value of a player to his team, that is, strength of offense and defense." The second is, "Number of games played."

For a young team — a team that lost Johan Santana and Torii Hunter last offseason, yet contended until Game No. 163 — Morneau's daily, steadying presence was invaluable, if difficult to quantify.

OK, that was my argument.

Morneau, who batted .300 with 23 homers and 129 RBIs, didn't help himself by going 10-for-59 after Sept. 9. He hit .348 with runners in scoring position, but Youkilis hit .374. Pedroia's slugging percentage was only six points lower.

As if that's not enough, sabermetric types no doubt would dismiss the subjective aspect of my reasoning. But the truth is, each of the top four finishers was a legitimate candidate.

Mauer caught the Twins' young pitching staff while leading the league with a .328 batting average. Youkilis moved from first base to third after the Red Sox lost Mike Lowell, hit in a number of different lineup spots and never stopped producing.

And then there was Pedroia.

As Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe points out, Pedroia was the only player in the majors last season to finish with at least 175 hits, 75 runs, 75 RBIs, 15 homers, 20 stole bases while winning a Gold Glove.

I could nitpick and argue that the loss of Morneau would have hurt the Twins more than the loss of Pedroia would have hurt the Red Sox, but a player should not be penalized for the quality of his teammates.

Here's to the MVP.

The one and only Dustin Pedroia.