Greinke for AL Cy Young; Lincecum gets nod in NL

The final week of baseball's regular season always gets fans talking about two things: pennant races and postseason awards.

MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year.

Time to tally up the numbers and hand out the hardware.

Joe Mauer, Mark Teixeira, Albert Pujols - all you MVP contenders, hang on a minute. Put down the heavy lumber, we'll get to you.

Promise.

This year, the best races were between the aces.

Start in the American League, where Zack Greinke has Cy Young Award stats in every department but one. He's a little short on wins, which are hard to come by in Kansas City.

Mired at the bottom of the AL Central standings, the Royals had such trouble scoring for Greinke and catching the ball behind him that he had made six starts this season in which he allowed no more than one earned run and did not get the victory.

Four times he had left a game in line for a win and wound up with a no-decision. Kansas City totaled 13 runs in his eight losses.

"It happens to every team," Greinke said recently at Yankee Stadium. "I know I beat some guys 1-0 or 2-1."

Still, the lack of support could cost him in a competitive AL field that also features Felix Hernandez, CC Sabathia, Justin Verlander and Roy Halladay. Even closer Mariano Rivera deserves a look.

Greinke went into the weekend with a solid (but not spectacular) record of 16-8 despite a 2.06 ERA that was tops in the majors. He ranked among the league leaders in strikeouts, innings pitched and several other categories.

Blossoming after a bout with social anxiety disorder, the 25-year-old right-hander had one start left, slated for Saturday in Minnesota.

No AL starting pitcher has won a Cy Young Award in a full season with fewer than 18 wins. Kansas City's David Cone went 16-5 in the strike-shortened season of 1994.

Hernandez appears to be Greinke's chief competition. The Seattle Mariners' ace was 18-5 with a 2.48 ERA going into his final start Sunday against Texas. Hernandez had pitched more innings than Greinke, but trailed in strikeouts.

In his first season with the AL East champion New York Yankees, Sabathia was 19-7 with a 3.21 ERA heading into Friday night's scheduled outing at Tampa Bay. Verlander (18-9, 3.45) led the majors with 264 strikeouts, taking pressure off his defense for first-place Detroit.

Halladay, however, is the guy getting overlooked.

He finished 17-10 with a 2.79 ERA for a fourth-place Toronto team that was nine games under .500. The right-hander was leading the league in innings, complete games and shutouts - despite a stint on the disabled list. Plus, he draws the toughest competition.

Pitching in the rugged AL East, Halladay faces New York, Boston and Tampa Bay on a regular basis, three of the highest-scoring offenses in the game. That's a factor that should be considered.

Rivera is a different case.

Still dominant at 39, he had a 1.79 ERA and 44 saves in 46 chances for the Yankees. He's never won a Cy Young Award, though several lesser relievers have.

This is not Rivera's year, though. There are too many worthy starters.

After a close look at all the contenders, Greinke's miniscule ERA gives him the nod. It's not fair to punish him for pitching on a poor team.

"Don't fault the individual because the people around him are not playing up to the level that he's playing," Royals manager Trey Hillman said, speaking about postseason awards in general. "I would hope that that would not affect the voters."

If Greinke wins, Steve Carlton will be the only Cy Young Award winner who pitched for a club that was worse. The Hall of Famer was an astounding 27-10 with a 1.97 ERA for the 1972 Philadelphia Phillies, who went 59-97.

NL Cy Young: For now, that distinction behind Carlton belongs to San Francisco right-hander Tim Lincecum, who won the NL award last year on a fourth-place team that finished 72-90.

He's right in the mix this season, too.

Pitching for a much-improved club, Lincecum (15-7) posted a 2.48 ERA with a league-high 261 strikeouts. He also surpassed 225 innings to rank among the league leaders.

Atlanta teammates Jair Jurrjens and Javier Vazquez put up excellent numbers, but the race could come down to a pair of St. Louis Cardinals: Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright.

The Cy Young winner in 2005, Carpenter (17-4) was leading the NL with a 2.24 ERA, but an early season injury limited him to 192 2-3 innings. Wainwright, meanwhile, was up to 227 innings heading into Friday night's scheduled start against Milwaukee.

Like Sabathia, Wainwright was trying for his 20th win. The 6-foot-7 right-hander, a postseason closer on St. Louis' 2006 World Series championship team, was 19-8 with a 2.58 ERA and 204 strikeouts.

"I like Wainwright this year. I think he has been the guy who's been the most dominant," Braves slugger Chipper Jones said. "He's given his team a chance to win virtually every time out and he's up among the league leaders in wins, ERA, quality starts, things like that. That's very important."

Jones has long been aware of Wainwright's talent. Born in Georgia, Wainwright was selected by the Braves in the first round of the 2000 amateur draft but was traded 3 1/2 years later to St. Louis in a package for outfielder J.D. Drew.

"Yeah, the Braves are going to rue the day that we let that guy go," Jones said.

Maybe so. For what it's worth, though, the pick here is Lincecum again. In today's game, win totals for starting pitchers are overrated.

AL MVP: Mauer, case closed.

True, Teixeira has been everything the Yankees could have hoped for when they signed him to a $180 million, eight-year contract last offseason. With 39 homers and 121 RBIs, he's been a consistent run producer with major power in the middle of the lineup. He plays excellent defense at first base, and he's a huge reason New York has the best record in baseball.

So is Derek Jeter, still rapping out hits and setting the table skillfully at age 35. Leadership, intangibles - he's one of a kind. His offensive numbers just don't stack up, especially in the power departments.

OK, Miguel Cabrera has probably been overlooked in Detroit.

Mauer, however, is having a historic season for Minnesota. Despite missing the first month with a back injury, he was hitting .367 with 28 home runs and 95 RBIs. En route to his third batting title in four years and second in a row, he also was leading the AL in on-base percentage (.442) and slugging percentage (.593).

Oh, by the way, HE'S A CATCHER! Gold Glove caliber, too. He squats all night, gets dinged with foul balls, calls the pitches and handles a pedestrian Twins staff that counts on his guidance.

All of that gives him an insurmountable edge. Not to mention, he has far less help in the lineup than Teixeira and Jeter.

The Twins were still in the playoff hunt heading into Friday, even though 2006 AL MVP Justin Morneau was sidelined with an injury after slumping throughout the second half.

Is it even possible for a player to be more valuable in every way than Mauer has this season?

NL MVP: Pujols should be a lock for his second consecutive honor and third in five years. Probably a unanimous choice, too.

The game's most prodigious and feared slugger, he led St. Louis to the NL Central title with a superior season at the plate, even by his amazing standards. With 47 homers, 134 RBIs and a .328 batting average, Pujols went into the weekend ranked in the top three of all three Triple Crown categories. He also led the majors in on-base percentage (.445), slugging (.663) and runs (122).

For good measure, Pujols had 16 stolen bases and he set a National League record for assists by a first baseman. Not much more he can do out there.

Overshadowed by Pujols were Milwaukee's Prince Fielder and Philadelphia's Ryan Howard. Both had monstrous seasons that somehow fell short.

Picks for other awards:

AL Rookie of the Year: Andrew Bailey, closer, Oakland Athletics.

NL Rookie of the Year: J.A. Happ, pitcher, Philadelphia Phillies.

AL Manager of the Year: Mike Scioscia, Angels.

NL Manager of the Year: Jim Tracy, Rockies.