Heading into the 2015 Major League Baseball Awards Season, center fielder Andrew McCutchen from the National League’s Pittsburgh Pirates and Mike Trout, his counterpart with the American League’s Los Angeles Angels, had combined to make nine All-Star Game appearances, win two Most Valuable Player Awards, one Rookie of the Year Award and one Gold Glove Award.
After Thursday night’s announcement of this year’s Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger Award winners, the two former Perfect Game standouts can now claim a total haul of eight Slugger awards, a trophy handed out annually to the big-leaguers recognized as the top hitters at their respective positions.
The 29-year-old McCutchen and 24-year-old Trout each picked up their fourth LS Silver Slugger Awards to head a list of 11 Perfect Game alumni to receive it this year. Louisville Slugger honors nine players from each league with the award, including a pitcher in the National League and a designated hitter in the American League.
McCutchen, an alumnus of both the 2004 PG All-American Classic and 2004 PG National Showcase, was joined in the NL’s Silver Slugger outfield by former PG standout Bryce Harper from the Washington Nationals; Harper is an alumnus of the 2009 PG All-American Classic.
The other NL Silver Slugger winners with prominent PG histories included San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey, who was with McCutchen at both the PG All-American Classic and PG National Showcase in 2004; Colorado Rockies’ third baseman Nolan Arenado, an alumnus of the 2008 PG National; and left-handed pitcher Madison Bumgarner, Posey’s Giants’ battery mate who was at both the PG A-A Classic and PG National in 2006.
The NL Silver Slugger Award was the third for Posey (2012, ’14-’15) and the second for Bumgarner (2014-15); it was the first for Harper and Arenado.
Trout, an alumnus of two PG WWBA World Championships (2007-08) and six other PG WWBA tournaments, was prominently joined on the American League side by New York Yankees catcher Brian McCann – an early PG performer who was at the 2001 PG WWBA World Championship in Jupiter, Fla., and the 2002 PG Pre-Draft Showcase in Cedar Rapids, Iowa – and Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson, who was in Jupiter in 2003.
This was McCann’s sixth LS Silver Slugger Award but his first in the American League – he won five (2006, 2008-11) with the Atlanta Braves – and the first for Donaldson.
McCutchen was the National League MVP in 2013 – he finished third in the balloting in both 2012 and 2014 – and is a strong contender again this year; he has been named to five straight NL All-Star teams (2011-15).
He ranked fourth in the NL in games played (157) while helping the Pirates to their third straight appearance in the NL Wild Card Game, and also ranked fourth in the league in on-base percentage (.401) and walks (98). He finished seventh in on-base plus slugging (OPS) percentage (0.889), eighth in RBI (96) and 10th in both doubles (36) and total bases (276).
Trout won his American League MVP Award in 2014 after finishing runner-up in both 2012 and 2013, and with Donaldson is considered a front-runner for the award again this year. He was the AL Rookie of the Year in 2012 and is already a four-time AL All-Star (2012-15.)
This season he led the league in WAR (9.4), slugging percentage (.590) and OPS (0.991) and was second in on-base percentage (.402) and total bases (339). He was tied with Donaldson for third in home runs (41), and also ranked third in runs scored (104) and walks (92).
What follows is a complete is of this year’s LS Silver Slugger Award winners who were involved with Perfect Game during their high school years:
2015 PG LOUISVILLE SLUGGER SILVER SLUGGER AWARD WINNERS
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Catcher:
- Brian McCann, New York Yankees – 2001 PG WWBA World Championship; 2002 PG Pre-Draft Showcase
Third Base:
- Josh Donaldson, Toronto Blue Jays – 2003 PG WWBA World Championship; 2003 Underclass World Championship; 2002 PG WWBA 18u PG WWBA National Championship
Outfield:
- Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels – 2007-08 PG WWBA World Championship; 2007-08 PG WWBA tournaments
- J.D. Martinez, Detroit Tigers – 2005 18u PG WWBA National Championship
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Catcher:
- Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants – 2004 PG All-American Classic; 2004 PG National Showcase; 2003-04 PG WWBA World Championship; 2003-05 PG WWBA tournaments
First Base:
- Paul Goldschmidt, Arizona Diamondbacks – 2004 PG WWBA tournaments
Third Base:
- Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies – 2008 PG National Showcase; 2007-08 PG showcases; 2007-08 PG WWBA, PG BCS tournaments
Shortstop:
- Brandon Crawford, San Francisco Giants – 2004 PG WWBA tournaments
Outfield:
- Bryce Harper, Washington Nationals – 2009 PG All-American Classic; 2008 PG Jr. National Showcase; 2005, ’08 PG showcases; 2008-09 PG WWBA tournaments
- Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh Pirates – 2004 PG All-American Classic; 2004 PG National Showcase; 2002-04 PG showcases; 2003-04 PG WWBA World Championship; 2003-04 PG WWBA tournaments
Pitcher:
- Madison Bumgarner, LHP, San Francisco Giants – 2006 PG All-American Classic; 2006 PG National Showcase; 2006 PG WWBA tournaments