Can the Chicago White Sox Sweep the AL Rookie of the Year and MVP Awards?

It's been a while since one team swept the Rookie of the Year and MVP voting in the same year (and no, Fred Lynn personally accomplishing the feat for Boston doesn't count).

However, 2008 might be the year the Chicago White Sox have legit candidates for both awards in Alexei Ramirez and Carlos Quentin.

[Author's Note: all stats referenced in this piece are as of games completed on Monday, Aug. 18]

First, in the Rookie of the Year race, it really boils down to two players in my mind: Ramirez and currently-injured Tampa 3B Evan Longoria.

My consideration for Rookie of the Year, as well as Most Valuable Player, has a number of components that play into it more than simple home runs and RBI. Both Tampa and the White Sox are in first place, so that takes care of one point.

The second point is making the stats of each player relative. Longoria has been playing every day and batting in the middle of Tampa's order since he arrived. Ramirez is batting generally in the lower third of the White Sox's batting order and playing a number of different positions (OF, SS, 2B).

So while Longoria has 20 more RBI, he has been in a run-producing part of the batting order more than Ramirez. A couples stats that I think are worth considering are the batting average of the players with runners in scoring position two outs, and the batting average with a man on third and less than two out.

In both cases, as well as regular, full-season batting average, Ramirez is ahead of Longoria by a substantial margin. For the season, Ramirez leads Longoria by .030 (.308-.278) in regular batting average. That number jumps to a difference of .105 (.351-.246) points with runners in scoring position and two outs, and .168 (.444-.276) with a man on third and less than two dead.

These stats would indicate that Ramirez has been a better run-producer than Longoria in a position with fewer opportunities. Couple the fact that Ramirez has been a regular on "Web Gems," and his ability to play multiple positions, and Ramirez is absolutely a viable candidate for the American League Rookie of the Year.

When it comes to the Most Valuable Player Award, there are arguments for whom, how, and what should matter when considering a player. In my opinion, I want a player that puts up across the board, top-notch numbers on a winning team.

With that being said, there are four names that many people consider to be "finalists" for the AL MVP Award: Josh Hamilton from Texas, Justin Morneau of Minnesota, Kevin Youkilis from Boston, and Carlos Quentin of the White Sox.

I'll go ahead and name all of the negatives about Quentin first when comparing him to this group: He's the only one hitting under .300 (though .293 isn't a moonshot from the benchmark), and he has the fewest doubles (22). In my mind, that's it for negatives with Quentin.

Consider that this is a guy who was viewed by the Diamondbacks as a castaway this past winter when they traded him for a low-level minor league 1B (Chris Carter), and then he was looked on as providing nothing more than OF depth for the Sox as a fourth or fifth OF coming into Spring Training.

He now leads the American League in home runs (seven more than Hamilton), is tied with Morneau for second in RBI (behind only Hamilton), and leads this foursome in runs (by nine). And despite Quentin having the lowest batting average of these four players, he boasts the highest on-base percentage (.395) and OPS (.981).

So, in the world of traditional statistics, Carlos Quentin is playing with, and exceeding, these other three candidates. But the MVP should also be a clutch player whose hits should matter. 

ESPN.com has a statistic for "Close & Late"-game situations, which accounts for a player's performance when it's after the seventh inning and the game is within two runs either way. In these situations, Carlos Quentin is hitting .368 with eight home runs and 20 RBI, dwarfing the numbers for Hamilton (.295-3-16), Morneau (.333-4-14), and Youkilis (.290-6-13). Quentin has had several big, clutch hits this season.

Finally, the last aspect of the Most Valuable Player consideration should be team performance. Youkilis, Morneau, and Hamilton are all on second place teams. The White Sox, led by Carlos Quentin, are in first.

It is just mid-August and there is still a lot of baseball to be played. But as it stands right now, I think the White Sox should sweep the Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player Awards in the American League.