Jason Giambi had taken over first base duties in Oakland after Mark McGwire was dealt in 1997. While Big Mac was setting home run records with St. Louis, Giambi was also developing into a potent power hitter, and quickly made Oakland fans forget about his predecessor. This year, Giambi had a McGwire-ish season... actually, it was more similar to one of Jimmie Foxx's best seasons. Giambi also asserted himself as a team leader, and used his big bat to lead the Athletics into the playoffs for the first time since 1992, and he was rewarded with the MVP.
The Blue Jays also had a first baseman who had a big year. Carlos Delgado was a Triple Crown candidate late into the season; he fell short of that goal, but still managed to combine a .344 batting average with 99 extra-base hits. A good case can be made that Delgado was better than Giambi... but the difference is very small. Giambi's team made the playoffs, Delgado's did not; Giambi also played his season in pitcher-friendly Oakland Coliseum. I think Giambi deserves that edge.
Starting with his first game in 1990, Frank Thomas has been one of the most feared hitters in baseball history. Thomas was the game's best hitter in the 1990's, and won a pair of MVP Awards, but had recently fallen on hard times. He had an off-year in 1998, then continued to struggle with injuries and a power shortage in 1999. This year, The Big Hurt proved that he wasn't washed up; he had one of his best seasons, and his White Sox led the league in wins. I don't think Thomas was quite as good as either Delgado or Giambi with the bat, and he also spent the year as a DH. But it was one heck of a comeback season.
Another big slugger who had a big year was Manny Ramirez; Manny might have been the best hitter in baseball, but an injury put him on the sidelines for over a month. Mike Sweeney quietly drove in 144 runs with the Royals; the reliable Edgar Martinez also put up the best power humbers of his career, with 37 homers and 145 RBI. Darin Erstad didn't have big power numbers, but he became the first player in 15 years to amass 240 hits in a season.
Before the season, the Seattle Mariners traded one of their franchise players, Ken Griffey Jr., to Cincinnati. They still made the playoffs; Alex Rodriguez took over as the club's biggest star, and had one of the best years ever by a shortstop. I think Rodriguez was the best player in the league; his numbers at the plate were almost as good as the big boys, plus he was a much better defensive player than either Giambi or Delgado. Rodriguez also had to play in Seattle's new ballpark, Safeco Field, which was very unfriendly for hitters.
As for the other shortstops... incredibly, Nomar Garciaparra of the Red Sox might actually have been better than Rodriguez. But Garciaparra missed three weeks with injury; worse, his team missed another golden opportunity to beat a Yankees team that barely made the playoffs. New York's Derek Jeter had also had another amazing season; he wasn't as good as either Rodriguez or Nomar, but he did finish the year with another World Series ring.
The Texas Rangers had a disappointing year after trading star slugger Juan Gonzalez before the season. Their great catcher, Ivan Rodriguez, won his ninth consecutive Gold Glove Award. He also had a monster first half of the season, posting some of the best power numbers ever by a catcher. But he broke his hand during the summer, and missed the second half of the season, robbing Rangers fans of seeing perhaps one of the greatest seasons by a catcher. Another catcher, Jorge Posada, had a terrific season with the Yankees, extending that franchise's tradition of great backstops.
I'm not going to criticize the selection of Giambi as MVP; I would have voted for Rodriguez, but I think they were both great choices. After Delgado, I think the best choices are Thomas, Garciaparra, Erstad and teammate Troy Glaus. Garciaparra had the bat and the defence, while Thomas led a young White Sox squad into the playoffs. But Erstad was sensational - hitting for average and power and playing great defence. He has never repeated his batting performance; but after moving to centre, Erstad was the defensive star of the 2002 World Champions.
