The Guy of the Year

For the first time in quite some time, the Guy of the Year award was actually somewhat close. Several players were good – or at least Royals good – on the field and/or at the plate. And several of them were lovable, semi-lovable or at least a little scruffy. A couple even got national recognition: Alex Gordon won the Gold Glove and Billy Butler edged out the rest of the league’s defensive liabilities and won the Silver Slugger for DH.

But the one guy who really stood out was Alcides Escobar. What a tremendous joy it was to see a ball hit to short and not instantly get the gut-clenching, here-we-go-again feeling. He wasn’t too shabby at the plate, either, especially not for a player hired mostly for his defense. He hit consistently enough to move up from the usual shortstop spot toward the bottom of the order and ended the season consistently in the number two slot. We were also at the ballpark to see him hit all but one or two of the home runs he hit this season. If he’s going to show us that much love, the least we can go is love him back.

Beyond his skill as a player, he also seemed to genuinely give a crap about being there. He hustled consistently even in non-game situations. He went after the umpires on more than one occasion, not in an “I’m in a slump and looking to take it out on someone” way but when they made bad calls and sincerely needed someone to call them on it. And he was a great post-game interview when he got the chance.

Overall he reminded me of the good part of watching Tony Pena Jr. play (the energy) without the bad part (the sucking).

At the start of the season Jeff Francoeur looked like he might have a shot at GotY, but by the time the summer heat set in he got on a cold streak he never quite seemed to get out of. Mike Moustakas also has GotY potential, so we’ll keep an eye on him in 2013.