Why I Cast My 2014 NL MVP Vote for Clayton Kershaw

Let's start here: I am in favor of pitchers being eligible to win an MVP award.

Also, I think it should happen only once in a blue moon (and, incidentally, Blue Moon Odom never received an MVP vote, nor should he have).

That brings me to this autumn, the National League, newly crowned 2014 NL MVP Clayton Kershaw…and my ballot.

Yes, I was one of 30 members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America who voted for the NL MVP award, and here are my top three:

1. Kershaw.

2. Giancarlo Stanton.

3. Andrew McCutchen.

I'll get to the rest of the 10-name ballot I submitted on the day after the regular season concluded in a moment. First, Kershaw.

What I believe when it comes to pitchers and the MVP award is that a couple of things must line up for it to happen: First, the pitcher's season must be so extraordinary as to be historic. Second, within the context of that history, the pitcher also should be enough of a workhorse that he pitches his team into the postseason.

In other words, exactly what Kershaw did in 2014.

There were the 41 consecutive scoreless innings he racked up from June 13 through July 1, tied for MLB's fifth-longest scoreless-innings streak since 1969.

There was the 1.77 ERA that made him the first pitcher ever to lead the majors in ERA in four consecutive seasons.

There was the no-hitter he fired on June 18, the first one in major league history with 15 or more strikeouts and no walks or hit batsmen, according to the Elias Sports Bureau (via Fox Sports).

There was the 0.86 WHIP and extraordinarily high strikeout rate of 10.8 per nine innings. Take those two numbers, along with the 1.77 ERA, and as my friend Jayson Stark of ESPN.com points out, they add up to the finest season ever for a left-handed pitcher. Not even Sandy Koufax can match those three in any of his seasons.

It's true: Since 1920, the five best ERAs by a left-hander are Carl Hubbell's 1.66 in 1933, Koufax's 1.73 in 1966, Koufax's 1.74 in 1964, Ron Guidry's 1.74 in 1978 and Kershaw's 1.77 this year.

Robert Houston/Associated Press

In '33, Hubbell had a 0.982 WHIP and 4.5 strikeouts per nine innings. In '66, Koufax went 0.985 and 8.8. In '64, Koufax went 0.928 and 9.0. In '78, Guidry went 0.946 and 8.2.

During Kershaw's last 21 starts, the Los Angeles Dodgers went an incredible 20-1. Over his 27 starts for the season they were 23-4. For those who argue that a starting pitcher contributes only once every five days...under normal circumstances, I'm inclined to agree with you. But these circumstances couldn't be more abnormal.

He led the majors with six complete games, and start after start he helped manage manager Don Mattingly's bullpen, not only by pitching deep into games, but by allowing Mattingly to ride his bullpen extra hard on the day before he pitched and allowing the Dodgers a fresh bullpen on the day after his starts.

From June 2 through Aug. 10, Kershaw went 11-0 with a 1.16 ERA.

The Dodgers won the NL West by six games over the San Francisco Giants. Subtract Kershaw and Magic Johnson could have devoted his full attention to the NBA by Sept. 1.

As Dodgers pitcher Jamey Wright told MLB Network Radio on Wednesday:

If not for Kershaw's stunning brilliance, individually and as it related to the Dodgers' division title, I would have had the Miami Marlins' Stanton as my MVP. Stanton led the NL with 37 homers, a .555 slugging percentage and 299 total bases despite missing the season's final 17 games after half of his face was shattered when he was hit by a pitch in Milwaukee.

I did not "penalize" Stanton for those missed games on my ballot, if you're wondering. Until that point, he had played in all 145 of the Marlins' games. Besides, Kershaw missed the first month of the season with a pulled muscle in his upper back (and still ranked third in the NL with 239 strikeouts).

Marc Serota/Getty Images

There is no question Stanton is deserving. The tough part about voting is that some will view this as a vote against Stanton rather than a vote for Kershaw. And that's just wrong. As so many decisions are at this time of year, you're splitting hairs. Which is more beautiful, a beach in Hawaii or a beach in Australia?

Something else you should know about voting, in case you don't already: It includes only the regular season. Ballots are due before the first playoff game is played. So if you're wondering why the Giants' Madison Bumgarner didn't win the NL Cy Young Award (he finished fourth) and why we're still raving about Kershaw for MVP and Cy Young after his rough October, that's why.

I love that there is "no clear-cut definition of what Most Valuable means" in the voting. Why the quotes? Because that's part of the actual definition! So are these selected criteria that voters are instructed to follow:

"Actual value of a player to his team, that is, strength of offense and defense."

"Number of games played."

"General character, disposition, loyalty and effort."

And, "Keep in mind that all players are eligible for MVP, including pitchers and designated hitters."

Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press

The definition of an MVP can change and evolve from year to year. And it should because it's not called "Player of the Year." If it was that, then just count up the statistics and name your man.

Placing a value on a player's "value" to his team and how that compares with other players and their "value" to their teams is not a perfect science. Just ask those who thought the Los Angeles Angels' Mike Trout should have finished ahead of the Detroit Tigers' Miguel Cabrera in the AL MVP voting in 2012 and 2013.

But that's part of the beauty of the award. The rest of my ballot, from Nos. 4 through 10, went like this: Jonathan Lucroy, Brewers; Buster Posey, Giants; Anthony Rendon, Nationals; Anthony Rizzo, Cubs; Hunter Pence, Giants; Josh Harrison, Pirates, and Carlos Gomez, Brewers.

McCutchen won the NL MVP award last season, and his on-base percentage (.410), OPS (.952) and OPS+ (168) were all better this year than last.

McCutchen's problem in the voting is that Stanton had a season for the ages.

And Stanton's problem is that Kershaw had a season for all time. That is why the Dodgers' lefty absolutely deserves to become the first pitcher to win the NL MVP award since the Cardinals' Bob Gibson way back in 1968. 

Scott Miller covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist for Bleacher Report. He has over two decades of experience covering MLB, including 14 years as a national baseball columnist at CBSSports.com.

Follow Scott on Twitter and talk baseball @ScottMillerBbl.