On Wednesday night the Cincinnati Reds announced the team awards, as voted on by the local chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America. There are three awards that are voted on: The Ernie Lombardi Team MVP Award, the Johnny Vander Meer Most Outstanding Pitcher Award, and the Joe Nuxhall Good Guy Award. Trevor Bauer was the winner for both the Ernie Lombardi Team MVP Award and the Johnny Vander Meer Most Outstanding Pitcher Awards. Neither of those is surprising. What would have been surprising is is the National League Cy Young Award Winner somehow didn’t win the Most Outstanding Pitcher Award on his own team. Amir Garrett brought home the Joe Nuxhall Good Guy Award.
The two awards that went to Trevor Bauer are a bit more self explanatory. And it’s very clear that he earned both of them. He led the league in ERA with a 1.73 mark, while also leading the league in WHIP (0.79), shutouts (2), ERA+ (276), and opponents batting average (.159) all while striking out 100 batters with just 17 walks in 73.0 innings pitched. He led the team in WAR – both the Baseball Reference and Fangraphs versions. Both awards were likely easy calls.
The Joe Nuxhall Good Guy Award seems a bit self explanatory – being a good guy – but it’s defined as a player who has a positive relationship with the media, but is also a role model in both the clubhouse and within the community. An unconfirmed rumor also includes willingness to fight the entire Pittsburgh Pirates roster – but again, that cannot be confirmed at this time. The local media voted this year for the award to go to Amir Garrett. Here’s what the Reds had as a part of their announcement:
Teammates, fans and media alike can always #CountOnAG.
Congratulations to Amir Garrett, the winner of the 2020 Joe Nuxhall Good Guy Award! ? pic.twitter.com/ZIRArKlxPB
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) November 18, 2020
When it comes to stuff on the field, that was a lot easier to see, and for Amir Garrett – it was another strong season. He pitched in 21 games with a 2.45 ERA this past season. Garrett picked up his first career save during the year, too. The lefty allowed just 10 hits and walked seven batters in 18.1 innings while striking out 26 of the 69 hitters that he faced during the 2020 season.
Amir will always be a hero in Cincy and hated in Pittsburgh. Much like Cueto was when he decided to take on our most hated enemy… Molina of the Cards…
Speaking of which, wonder if we can sign Johnny to a minor league deal and then see how it goes?