SEATTLE — Whether it’s a harbinger of the Cy Young Award won’t be known until Nov. 12, but Seattle Mariners right-handed pitcher Felix Hernandez was picked Wednesday as the American League’s top pitcher by league executives.
The Sporting News polled 22 AL general managers and assistant general managers in determining an all-star team — one player at each position, one starting pitcher and one relief pitcher.
Hernandez was the only Mariners’ player selected.
The poll of execs picked Houston’s Jose Altuve over Robinson Cano at second base, Texas’ Adrian Beltre over Kyle Seager at third base and New York’s Dellin Betances over Fernando Rodney as top reliever.
Cano started at second base in the All-Star Game; Seager was an All-Star reserve; and Rodney was an All-Star who led the league in saves.
The rest of the AL team:
Catcher Salvy Perez (Kansas City), first baseman Jose Abreu (Chicago), shortstop Erick Aybar (Los Angeles), outfielders Mike Trout (Los Angeles), Michael Brantley (Cleveland) and Jose Bautista (Toronto), and designated hitter Victor Martinez (Detroit).
Hernandez is viewed as a strong candidate to win the Cy Young Award after going 15-6 with a 2.14 earned run average. Other top contenders include Cleveland’s Corey Kluber (18-9, 2.44) and Chicago’s Chris Sale (12-4, 2.17).
The Cy Young Award is determined by a vote of 30 members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America — two members from the chapter in each league city.
Votes were cast prior to the start of postseason play.
The Sporting News also polled 11 National League execs in choosing an all-star team for that league. The winners:
Catcher Jonathan Lucroy (Milwaukee), first baseman Anthony Rizzo (Chicago), second baseman Dee Gordon (Los Angeles), shortstop Jhonny Peralta (St. Louis), third baseman Anthony Rendon (Washington).
Outfielders Giancarlo Stanton (Miami), Andrew McCutchen (Pittsburgh) and Justin Upton (Atlanta); starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles) and relief pitcher Craig Kimbrel (Atlanta).
Gold Glove finalists
The finalists for the Gold Glove defensive awards will be announced Thursday by Rawlings Sporting Goods, which has sponsored the awards since 1957.
There will be three finalists for each defensive position in each league. The winners will be announced Nov. 4. The winners are determined by a vote of the managers and coaches in each league.
The Mariners haven’t had a Gold Glove recipient since outfielders Ichiro Suzuki and Franklin Gutierrez in 2010, although second baseman Robinson Cano won in 2010 and 2012 while playing for the New York Yankees.
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