(SportsNetwork.com) – Clayton Kershaw will need to find a little more room to
his already crowded trophy case.
Just one day after garnering a third career Cy Young Award in unanimous
fashion, the Los Angeles Dodgers ace became the first pitcher in 46 years to
be named the National League’s Most Valuable Player.
Kershaw’s win was part of a Southern California sweep of Major League
Baseball’s most prestigious honor, with Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
outfielder Mike Trout unanimously claiming top honors in the American League
after runner-up finishes to Detroit slugger Miguel Cabrera in each of the
previous two years.
Trout was not to be denied this time, putting together a sensational all-
around 2014 campaign to easily outdistance another Tiger, Victor Martinez, for
the award. The five-tool superstar was named first on all 30 ballots cast for
a total of 420 points to become the 10th unanimous selection in AL history.
The NL race was a bit closer, with Kershaw earning 18 first-place votes and
355 points to fend off challenges from Miami Marlins outfielder Giancarlo
Stanton and 2013 league MVP Andrew McCutchen of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Stanton finished atop eight ballots and accumulated 298 points, with McCutchen
capturing the other four first-place votes and taking in 271 points.
Kershaw is the first NL hurler to win the award since St. Louis’ Bob Gibson in
1968 and only the 11th pitcher in MLB history to pull off the Cy Young-MVP
double in a season. The Tigers’ Justin Verlander was the last to do so in
2011.
The soft-spoken left-hander is also the first Dodgers’ MVP since Kirk Gibson
back in 1988.
Trout, who turned 23 on Aug. 7, is the third-youngest AL winner and first
unanimous choice since Seattle’s Ken Griffey Jr. in 1997. Oakland Athletics
pitcher Vida Blue was 22 when he captured the award in 1971, while Baltimore
Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr. turned 23 on Aug. 24 when named MVP in 1983.
Only two Angels, Don Baylor in 1979 and Vladimir Guerrero in 2004, had
previously won the AL MVP.
