Phillies first half award winners: Most Valuable Player, Cy Young, and more
By John Town
Most Valuable Player: Cesar Hernandez
This is the award I struggled to decide on the most. There were three deserving candidates in my mind (if you don’t count Aaron Nola) but in the end, I settled on Cesar Hernandez. When you look at the full picture, he is the only Phillie that has checked all the boxes.
Hernandez has played in every game so far, starting 92 of 95 and entering as a pinch-hitter in the other three. He has been about as consistent as possible with relatively similar numbers every month. In 423 plate appearances, Hernandez has a .270/.378/.382 line with a 14.4 percent walk rate, 20.6 percent strikeout rate, 112 wRC+, and 107 OPS+. He leads the team in win probability added.
Where Hernandez got the edge for me is his defensive and baserunning value. He leads the team with 14 stolen bases while being caught stealing only twice. Of the three I considered, Hernandez had the best ultimate zone rating, defensive runs saved, and Fangraphs defensive value.
The argument could very well be made for either of the runners-up, but I tend to value production in all aspects of the game more than standing out in one facet. It was very close in my head and it shouldn’t be held against the others.
Runners-up: Rhys Hoskins, Odubel Herrera