BBWAA Awards 2020: Full List of Finalists Announced and Reaction

The 2020 Major League Baseball season was anything but ordinary with just a 60-game regular season, midseason rule changes and an expanded playoffs, and some individuals stood out among their peers.

Some of those individuals, like those from the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, will be rewarded for those efforts.

The Baseball Writers' Association of America released a list of finalists for the Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year, Manager of the Year, Cy Young and MVP Awards on Monday. According to the its website, the Rookies of the Year will be announced Nov. 9, the Managers of the Year will be announced Nov. 10, the Cy Young awards will be announced Nov. 11 and the MVPs will be announced Nov. 12. 

All voting was done prior to the postseason.

Here is a list of the finalists:

American League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year

• Cristian Javier, Houston Astros
• Kyle Lewis, Seattle Mariners
• Luis Robert, Chicago White Sox

National League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year

• Alec Bohm, Philadelphia Phillies
• Jake Cronenworth, San Diego Padres
• Devin Williams, Milwaukee Brewers

American League Manager of the Year

• Kevin Cash, Tampa Bay Rays
• Charlie Montoyo, Toronto Blue Jays
• Rick Renteria, Chicago White Sox

National League Manager of the Year

• Don Mattingly, Miami Marlins
• David Ross, Chicago Cubs
• Jayce Tingler, San Diego Padres

American League Cy Young

• Shane Bieber, Cleveland Indians
• Kenta Maeda, Minnesota Twins
• Hyun-Jin Ryu, Toronto Blue Jays

National League Cy Young

• Trevor Bauer, Cincinnati Reds
• Yu Darvish, Chicago Cubs
• Jacob deGrom, New York Mets

American League MVP

• Jose Abreu, Chicago White Sox
• DJ LeMahieu, New York Yankees
• Jose Ramirez, Cleveland Indians

National League MVP

• Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers
• Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves
• Manny Machado, San Diego Padres

While the MVP finalists always generate headlines, the American League Manager of the Year list immediately jumps out.

That is because much of the discussion coming out of the World Series was about Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash's decision to remove starter Blake Snell in the sixth inning of Game 6 with a 1-0 lead after just 73 pitches. The Rays bullpen proceeded to blow the game from there, and the Dodgers celebrated their World Series title as a result.

Cash, who guided Tampa to an AL-best 40-20 record, is a finalist alongside Rick Renteria, who was fired by the Chicago White Sox and eventually replaced by 76-year-old Tony La Russa.

Another notable development came in the list of finalists for the American League Cy Young, as Kenta Maeda of the Minnesota Twins and Hyun-Jin Ryu of the Toronto Blue Jays were both members of the Dodgers just last season. That Los Angeles lost two pitchers of such caliber and still won the World Series is a testament to the talent still there and the overall depth the team built on the way to the title.

None of the current Dodgers made the list of finalists for the National League Cy Young, although it is an award that their ace, Clayton Kershaw, has won three times.

This year's finalists are Trevor Bauer, Yu Darvish and Jacob deGrom, but whether the former will win it isn't even the most intriguing offseason storyline surrounding the ace. After dominating for the Cincinnati Reds and helping lead them to the playoffs, Bauer is set for free agency and could command the biggest contract of the entire offseason.

The Dodgers were represented in the list of MVP finalists, as marquee offseason addition Mookie Betts was joined by Freddie Freeman of the Atlanta Braves and Manny Machado of the San Diego Padres.

Los Angeles couldn't have asked for much more out of Betts considering he is an MVP finalist and helped lead the team to the title. Fans can expect plenty after the franchise signed him to a head-turning 12-year contract extension in July.

As for the American League, the MVP race may be the closest of all the awards with Jose Abreu of the Chicago White Sox, DJ LeMahieu of the New York Yankees and Jose Ramirez as finalists. Whoever takes it home will be a first-time winner.