LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Nov. 6, 2014) –Louisville Slugger®, the Official Bat Supplier of Major League Baseball®, proudly announced the 2014 Silver Slugger™ Award winners tonight in a special hour-long telecast exclusively on MLB Network.
Dodger first baseman Adrian Gonzalez was honored with his second-career Silver Slugger, also winning the award in 2011, and became just the third Los Angeles first baseman to take home the award since its inception in 1980, joining Eddie Murray (1990) and Eric Karros (1995). Gonzalez was the only Major Leaguer to win both a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger in 2014 and becomes just the fourth all-time Dodger to be honored with both awards in the same season, joining Dusty Baker (1981), Russell Martin (2007) and Matt Kemp (2009, 2011). Gonzalez was also previously honored this season with a Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Award and as the Dodgers’ nominee for the Hank Aaron Award.
"I'm excited to win the Silver Slugger Award, especially with so many deserving first basemen in the National League this year," said Gonzalez. "I'm grateful for the consideration and votes for this prestigious honor."
Gonzalez led the Majors with 116 RBI, the first Dodger to do so since Matt Kemp in 2011, while batting .276 and leading the Dodgers with 41 doubles (3rd, NL) and 27 home runs (6th, NL) in 159 games. The 32-year-old was one of the best clutch hitters in the game, batting .333 with runners in scoring position (62-for-186), the sixth-best mark in the National League.
Gonzalez reached the 20-home run mark for the eighth time in nine full MLB seasons since 2006 and topped 100 RBI for the fifth consecutive season and seventh time in his career. Since joining the Dodgers in 2012, he leads the club in hits (377), doubles (83), home runs (52), RBI (238) and games played (352).
The Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger Award winners were determined by a vote of Major League Baseball managers and coaches who selected the players they felt were the best offensive producers at each position in both the American and National Leagues in 2014. Selections were based on a combination of offensive statistics, including batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage, as well as the managers’ and coaches’ general impressions of a player’s overall offensive value. Managers and coaches were not allowed to vote for players on their own teams. Tabulation of the balloting was verified by the accounting firm of Mountjoy Chilton Medley LLP.
Eight of the 18 team members are first-time Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger Award winners, including American League batting champion Jose Altuve, National League home run leader Giancarlo Stanton, and American League rookie sensation Jose Abreu. Meanwhile, Adrian Beltre landed his fourth Silver Slugger Award, while Jose Bautista, Ian Desmond, Andrew McCutchen, and Mike Trout all won their third.
Among the teams represented by this year’s winners, the Indians, Giants, Nationals, Pirates, and White Sox each had multiple Silver Slugger Award winners. Seven winners in the NL were on teams that made the Postseason, while seven winners in the AL were on teams that did not play in October.
Two Indians, Michael Brantley in the outfield and Yan Gomes at catcher, were first-time winners in the AL, while World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner of the World Champion San Francisco Giants joined Stanton, Neil Walker of the Pirates and Anthony Rendon of the Nationals as first time winners in the NL. Gonzalez, Victor Martinez of the Tigers, Alexei Ramirez of the White Sox, Justin Upton of the Braves, and Buster Posey of the Giants all won their second awards.
2014 Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger Winners
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Pos. | Winner | Team | Stats | # SSAs won |
1B | Jose Abreu | Chicago White Sox | .317, 36 HR, 107 RBI | 1st |
2B | Jose Altuve | Houston Astros | .341, 7 HR, 59 RBI, 56 SB | 1st |
3B | Adrian Beltre | Texas Rangers | .324, 19 HR, 77 RBI | 4th - ’04,’10,’11, ‘14 |
SS | Alexei Ramirez | Chicago White Sox | .273, 15 HR, 74 RBI, 21 SB | 2nd - ’10, ‘14 |
OF | Jose Bautista | Toronto Blue Jays | .286, 35 HR, 103 RBI, 104 BB | 3rd – ’10, ’11, ‘14 |
OF | Michael Brantley | Cleveland Indians | .327, 20 HR, 97 RBI, 23 SB | 1st |
OF | Mike Trout | L.A. Angels | .287, 36 HR, 111 RBI, 83 BB | 3rd – ’12, ’13, ‘14 |
C | Yan Gomes | Cleveland Indians | .278, 21 HR, 74 RBI | 1st |
DH | Victor Martinez | Detroit Tigers | .335, 32, HR, 103 RBI, 70 BB | 2nd – ’04, ‘14 |
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Pos. | Winner | Team | Stats | # SSAs won |
1B | Adrian Gonzalez | L.A. Dodgers | .276, 27 HR, 116 RBI | 2nd – ’11, ‘14 |
2B | Neil Walker | Pittsburgh Pirates | .271, 23 HR, 76 RBI | 1st |
3B | Anthony Rendon | Washington Nationals | .287, 21 HR, 83 RBI | 1st |
SS | Ian Desmond | Washington Nationals | .255, 24 HR, 91 RBI, 24 SB | 3rd – ’12, ’13, 14 |
OF | Andrew McCutchen | Pittsburgh Pirates | .314, 25 HR, 83 RBI, 84 BB | 3rd – ’12, ’13, ‘14 |
OF | Giancarlo Stanton | Miami Marlins | .288, 37 HR, 105 RBI, 94 BB | 1st |
OF | Justin Upton | Atlanta Braves | .270, 29 HR, 102 RBI | 2nd – ’11, ‘14 |
C | Buster Posey | San Francisco Giants | .311, 22 HR, 89 RBI | 2nd – ’12, ‘14 |
P | Madison Bumgarner | San Francisco Giants | .258, 4 HR, 15 RBI, .286 OBP | 1st |
MLB NETWORK HAS EXCLUSIVE ANNOUNCEMENT OF WINNERS
For the sixth consecutive year, MLB Network made the exclusive announcement of the Silver Slugger Awards Presented by Louisville Slugger in a special one-hour telecast. All 18 awards were inside MLB Network’s Studio 42 for the Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger Award Show. Each trophy is three-feet tall and bears the engraved name of the winner and his Silver Slugger teammates in his respective league. After the 2014 Silver Slugger Award Show, the awards are being sent back to Louisville where the public can see all 18 on display over the winter at Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory. The specially designed Silver Slugger Awards will be presented to each winner in on-field ceremonies early in the 2015 MLB season.
LOUISVILLE SLUGGER’S SILVER BAT™ AWARD TO BATTING CHAMPIONS
The Silver Slugger Award was instituted by Louisville Slugger in 1980 as a natural extension of the Silver Bat™ Award, which is – as its name indicates – a silver-plated bat presented by Louisville Slugger to the batting champions in the AL and NL. This year’s Silver Bat Award winners are Jose Altuve of the Houston Astros and Justin Morneau of the Colorado Rockies. Altuve hit .341 to claim the AL batting title. Morneau won the NL batting title with a .319 average.
Altuve and Morneau will receive their Silver Bat Awards from a representative of Louisville Slugger in on-field presentations in the spring of 2015. Louisville Slugger initiated the Silver Bat Award in 1949, with the awards going to the players with the highest batting average in the American and National Leagues. George Kell of the Tigers and Jackie Robinson of the Dodgers were the inaugural Silver Bat winners.
About Louisville Slugger
Louisville Slugger® is the Official Bat of Major League Baseball® and the #1 name in baseball for 130 years. Louisville Slugger is synonymous with America’s pastime. Originating in 1884, Louisville Slugger bats have graced the hands of the greatest players through history, including stars of today and more than 80% of the hitters in Cooperstown. Louisville Slugger continues to innovate and provide players the products and confidence they need to own the plate and make new history every day.
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