Minor league players of the Year by Sickels

[burnt out cubbie fan]

John Sickels is naming players of the year for each of the leagues. There are three catagories, position player, pitcher, and closer. AA and AAA have been posted so far and A is going to be posted tomorrow. It is worth noting that these are based solely on the player's performance this season and not on past performance or future ability. He also only took players that played almost a whole season at that level.

 

PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE

CLOSER: Jermaine Van Buren, Iowa. Second in the league with 25 saves, his 1.98 ERA pushes him ahead of save leader Brad Baker. Van Buren could end up being a very effective middle reliever if the Cubs give him a fair chance.

 

http://minorleagueball.com/story/2005/9/14/144628/958

 

 

SOUTHERN LEAGUE

STARTING PITCHER: I will go with Cubs prospect Ricky Nolasco, who led the league in wins, strikeouts, and was third in ERA. Chad Billingsley isn't far behind and is a better long-term prospect, but for purposes of this exercise Nolaso has the advantage of ERA and better control.

 

http://minorleagueball.com/story/2005/9/15/15311/8608

 

Nobody from Daytona was selected for the High A awards. Here is the link to the article in case you want to view it anyways.

http://minorleagueball.com/story/2005/9/16/163457/167

 

MIDWEST LEAGUE

POSITION PLAYER: Eric Patterson of Peoria. Corey's younger brother, Eric led the league with a .333 average, finished fifth with 40 steals, was third in OBP, and second in SLG. South Bend first baseman Cesar Nicholas also had an excellent year, but his contributions weren't as broad as Patterson's.

 

STARTING PITCHER: Another Peoria player, RHP Sean Gallagher. He led the league with 14 wins, was second in ERA at 2.71, and posted a strong 139/55 K/BB ratio in 146 innings. Andrew Sonnanstine of Southwest Michigan went 10-4, led the league with a 2.55 ERA, and had an exceptional 103/11 K/BB ratio, but Gallagher's 40-inning edge and superior H/IP ratio give him the award.

 

http://minorleagueball.com/story/2005/9/17/141713/491

Edited September 19, 2005 by burnt out cubbie fan

[Chris]

Congrats to JVB and Ricky!

[Transmogrified Tiger]

I bet you're all regretting not voting Nolasco Minor League POY now.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

I bet you're all regretting not voting Nolasco Minor League POY now.

 

I'm not sure regret is the right word.

[burnt out cubbie fan]

I updated the original post with the selections from the Midwest League.

[Chris]

Congrats to JVB and Ricky!

 

As well as Eric and Sean!

[Laura]

I wonder why Kyle Aselton (Beloit) isn't showing up on MiLB anymore as the MWL ERA leader/winner (2.49, 112 IPs) -- and doesn't seem to be showing up at all in the league-wide pitching stats. I believe he started one of the playoff games and pitched extremely well, though Beloit didn't advance.