News
In three TYIB categories, Jays in running
Lind, Hill, Halladay represent Toronto in annual awards
By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com
11/25/09 5:00 PM EST
TORONTO -- Adam Lind has a personality to match the quiet season he turned in for the Blue Jays in 2009. His offensive production was prolific, and yet it was easily overlooked in light of a disappointing year for Toronto.
Lind's work in the batter's box has not gone entirely unnoticed, though. After earning an American League Silver Slugger Award and garnering a handful of votes in the balloting for the AL Most Valuable Player Award, the young outfielder is up for the Unsung Star Award as part of the This Year in Baseball Awards.
Second baseman Aaron Hill is also up for the Unsung Star Award, and ace pitcher Roy Halladay is in the mix for Starter of the Year honor.
The ballot boxes will close at 7:59 p.m. ET on Dec. 11, giving Toronto fans time to cast their ballots for Lind and two other Blue Jays players. In 2008, a record 12 million votes were cast for the TYIB Awards, and that figure could be surpassed this time around as fans weigh in on the year's top hitter, pitcher, moments and more. The results of the voting will be revealed during the week of Dec. 14-18.
In the Unsung Star category, Lind and Hill are up against Jayson Werth of the Phillies, Jason Bartlett and Ben Zobrist of the Rays, Billy Butler of the Royals, Nelson Cruz of the Rangers, Shin-Soo Choo of the Indians, Ubaldo Jimenez of the Rockies and Mark Reynolds of the D-backs.
Lind, who served primarily as a designated hitter for the Jays this past season, ended his breakout year batting .305 with a .370 on-base percentage and a .562 slugging percentage, belting 35 homers with 46 doubles, 93 runs scored and 114 RBIs. Among all hitters in the AL, the 26-year-old Lind finished in the top five in homers, doubles, RBIs, extra-base hits (81) and total bases (330).
Beyond being considered for baseball's Unsung Star Award, Lind is also in the mix for Performance of the Year. In Toronto's 18-10 win over Texas on Aug. 31, Lind went 3-for-5 with two home runs and eight RBIs. White Sox lefty Mark Buehrle's perfect game on July 23 and Giants southpaw Jonathan Sanchez's no-hitter on July 10 are among other performances up for the award.
Over 158 games this season for the Blue Jays, Hill finished with a .286 average, 36 home runs, 37 doubles and 108 RBIs. Hill, who also nabbed an AL Silver Slugger Award, ended with 195 hits, 103 runs scored and 340 total bases along the way. Among Major League second basemen, he ranked first in home runs, RBIs, total bases and at-bats (682).
For the Starter of the Year category, Halladay is up against AL Cy Young Award winner Zack Greinke of the Royals and National League Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum of the Giants. Other candidates include Cardinals pitchers Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright, Felix Hernandez of the Mariners, Javier Vazquez of the Braves, CC Sabathia of the Yankees, Justin Verlander of the Tigers and Jon Lester of the Red Sox.
Halladay ended the year with a 17-10 record and a 2.79 ERA, marking the fourth consecutive season in which he compiled at least 16 victories and the second year in a row he had an ERA under 2.80. In the AL, Halladay ranked first in pitches per inning (14.2), second in innings (239), ground balls created (366) and walks-plus-hits per inning (1.13), as well as third in ERA and fifth in strikeouts (208).
Jordan Bastian is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
