Colorado Marines Season in Review

With a statement series, the Marines swept Vero Beach in 3 games to conclude their season 83-79. The Beach Bums, at 77-75, need to finish 7-4 in order to guarantee the last wild card spot. So while the Marines wait on their playoff hopes, they'll look back on their regular season:

Team MVP/Pitching MVP: Felix Hernandez. Although he didn't win the 2 necessary games to lock up win #20, Felix is the reason the Marines are even in the hunt. Finishing 18-9 with a 2.91 ERA, a 1.08 WHIP and 241 Ks, Felix boasts Cy Young credentials. Countless times after dropping a game or two in a series, the Marines would turn to Felix to be the stopper and he would come up big. He carried the team on his shoulders all season, and if the Marines make it into the playoffs, they will be doing the same.
Offensive MVP: Evan Longoria. Evan finished the season with a .301 (4th)/.398 (2nd)/.563 (3rd) triple-slash, 100 RBIs, and his 33 HRs and 58 doubles were both team highs. In addition, he played outstanding defense at a prime position, although his 20 caused some grief. He played like a man possessed in the final month of the season, and it seemed like he was constantly coming up with the big hits.
Relief MVP: Jon Broxton. Despite 5 losses, 3 blown saves and the occasionally collapse with inherited runners, Broxton's 1.63 ERA, 26 saves and 115 Ks in 72 innings are far too impressive to ignore. The Marines valued him as their best arm in important situations, and often used him as a fireman to shut the door in non-save situations.
Newcomer Award: Matt Wieters. Being the #1 pick brought great expectations for Mr. Wieters, and he mostly lived up to them in his first year finishing .311/.332/.409 with 7 HRs. The power wasn't there often, but he made it count when he did knock one, hitting two walk off home runs in August. Despite a rocky 2010 season, he will still be a prominent figure in the Marines plans going forward.

And some less prestigious credit...
Team LVP/Pitching LVP: Johnny Cueto. With what looked to be a solid card with even splits, Johnny Cueto was an embarrassment all year. Flirting with a double digit ERA halfway through the season was a constant source of annoyance, wondering why exactly he was so bad. In the end, he finished 9-15 with a 7.09 ERA and an astonishing 233 hits allowed in 176 innings. His penultimate start, however, was a gem against Vero Beach which helped the Marines forgive him a bit. Please be better next year, Johnny.
Better Than Yuniesky Betancourt (I guess) Award: Matt Kemp. With a card that should have brought him MVP numbers, Kemp was sub-par all season, ending up hitting .240/.293/.397. The power was there (23 HRs), the speed was there (30 steals) and the defense was great, but he simply did not get on base enough. With a dismal season in real baseball, too, things are not looking too great for Kemp. Dump Rihanna, PLEASE.
I Asked for Relief, Not Grief! Award: Franklin Morales. Overall, the bullpen was a very bright spot for the Marines, but having to choose, Morales is the easy winner. The Marines hoped he could be an effective LOOGY, but it was not to be. His ERA stayed tame (3.18) but an absolutely horrifying 8.7 BB/9 shows that if the Marines hadn't cut him off quickly, he would have been headed for trouble. He was also a bum in real baseball and will be collecting unemployment checks this winter.
Wish I'd Let You Go to Napa Award: Gabe Kapler. Kapler was brought in to do one thing and one thing only - hit lefties. With 42.1 OB% and 18.1 XBH%, it seemed a reasonable expectation that he would be a deadly force against the CCs of the world. What did he do then against lefties, you ask? Kapler hit .184 with just 3 HRs in 114 ABs pitted against southpaws. His .368 OBP was nice, but I really don't think it's too much to ask for a platoon guy to get over the Mendoza line against his better half.

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Whatever happens with Vero Beach and the playoffs this year, the Marines have a very bright future and look to be serious contenders in 2011. With a stacked rotation of Felix Hernandez, Cliff Lee, Johnny Cueto, Francisco Liriano and Ervin Santana, a blowaway bullpen highlighted by Luke Gregerson and Daniel Bard, supported by offensive stalwarts Joey Votto, Evan Longoria and Justin Upton, not making the playoffs next year will be nothing short of failure.