The Baseball Writers Association of America and Major League Baseball announced the three finalists from each league for MVP, the Cy Young Award, Manager of the Year, and Rookie of the Year.
On that list of 24 players, there were 12 glaring omissions.
We won't say who should be out — just who we think should have been in. Feel free to insert these players where you deem them appropriate:
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Johnny Cueto – National League Cy Young
It's hard to miss a pitcher with a 2.79 ERA and 2.96 FIP — numbers that were arguably better than Kyle Hendricks and Max Scherzer. Still — nowhere to be found on the list.
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Joey Votto – National League MVP
We're right to not hold Mike Trout's terrible teammates against him, so why are we holding Votto's against him? You might not have noticed, but he had a split line of .326/.434/.550 this season — absurd numbers.
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Francisco Lindor – American League MVP
The best player on the American League's best team — Lindor will surely be in the final three of this category for years to come, but the second-best defensive WAR player in the Majors who had a .301/.358/ .435 slash line deserves consideration for MVP this year, no?
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Jon Gray – National League Rookie of the Year
The Rockies starter had a 3.60 FIP, struck out 9.9 per nine and had a 3.7 WAR this season, all better numbers than Kenta Maeda.
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Jose Fernandez – National League Cy Young
Fernandez was marvelous in 2016 before his untimely death — 6.2 WAR (second in the Majors), 2.30 FIP, and an incredible 12.49 K/9 and a Majors-leading 2.81 SIERA. We made the case for him earlier this fall.
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David Ortiz – American League MVP
Big Papi's final season was one of his best — 38 homers, with an incredible .315/.401/.620 slash line and 163 weighted runs created plus — second in baseball — for one of MLB's best teams. Who cares if he doesn't play defense with those numbers at the plate?
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Anthony Rizzo – National League MVP
The Cubs' first baseman's numbers don't' differ too much from his counterpart across the diamond, presumptive NL MVP Kris Bryant.
Rizzo: .292/.385/.544, 32 homers, 109 RBI, 145 wRC+
Bryant: .292/.385/.554, 39 homers, 102 RBI, 149 wRC+
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Adrian Beltre – American League MVP
This is, in many ways, a lifetime achievement award for the surefire Hall of Famer, who has shockingly never won an MVP award in his career. Playing for a playoff team this year, he certainly was worthy of MVP consideration this season, posting a .300/.358/.521 slash line with his always incredible defense (15.2 defensive WAR).
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Josh Donaldson – American League MVP
Donaldson put up numbers that more than deserved a second-straight MVP award — for a player on a playoff squad to post a slash line of .284/.404/.549 with above-average defense to be left off the finalist list is confusing.
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Andrew Miller – American League Cy Young Award
We all saw what he could do in the playoffs, but there was an incredible regular season before that — throwing in 70 games, striking out a jaw-dropping 14.89 per nine, and leaving 95 percent of runners on base. He wasn't a closer and he wasn't a starter, but it's not 1995, either.
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Zach Britton – American League Cy Young
How can you argue with a 0.54 ERA, 47 saves and allowing only four earned runs all season?
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Noah Syndergaard – National League Cy Young
The Mets ace led the Majors in WAR (per Fangraphs) at 6.5 — he had a league-leading 2.3 FIP, struck out 10.6 per nine and had a 2.60 ERA.
Not only should Syndergaard have been a finalist, it's hard to make the case that he shouldn't have won the award, even with incredible competition.
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