The Kevin Youkilis Story: Why The Former Fat Third Baseman Deserves Red Sox MVP

Congrats to Pedroia for MVP. The Red Sox wouldn't be able to compete in the AL East without him, but there's another guy who deserves the credit.

Here's a few hints. He was the most consistent hitter on the team. His plate discipline is unmatched. He relieved Red Sox fans who feared the absence in the cleanup spot after the Manny Ramirez trade.

Kevin Youkilis. It wasn't long ago when Youkilis could have never dreamed of being an MVP on any level. Most teams thought that he wouldn't make the majors.

Youkilis was drafted in the eighth round of the 2001 draft. As stated in "Moneyball" by Michael Lewis, Youkilis was regarded as the fat third baseman who couldn't field, hit, or throw.

In that same book, A's general manager Billy Beane foreshadows Youkilis's future by stating that he would have been drafted by the A's in the first round if Beane had more of a say in the draft at the time.

Youkilis made the majors by being able to take a walk and practically killing himself through the year.

One thing Youkilis is known for is the second half drop off. He never had the physical tools for the majors, so he'd give more effort than anyone else throughout the year, but just couldn't make it in the second half. He lacked the endurance of most major leaguers.

In 2004, Youkilis's second half OBP was .333 compared to the first half where it was .396.

His OBP dropped 60 points in 2006. It dropped off 63 points in 2007.

He suffered an injury towards the end of both 2006 and 2007, his first two full years in the majors. There were doubts as to whether he could make it all the way.

Youkilis was a key part of the world champion 2007 Red Sox, but that lineup was lead by David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, and Mike Lowell. Youkilis usually batted in the seven spot as the bottom of the order would follow.

What happened to the middle of the order in 2008? Ortiz's season was full of slumps and injury. Lowell missed 50 games. Ramirez was traded. Not to mention that JD Drew suffered an injury after being an MVP candidate in the first half of the season.

You usually can only find magic in Disney movies, but Youkilis was amazing all season. Youkilis was amazing in the first half as usual, posting a .381 OBP. In the second half, an OBP of .403.

It wasn't easy though. It's a miracle that the Red Sox made it to the postseason in the AL East with all the injuries.

In May, everyone thought that the Red Sox were done without Ortiz, who was out nearly two months with a wrist injury. Thanks to Manny, Drew, Youkilis, and Lowell, the team survived.

Drew was their best hitter in May. Lowell was their best hitter in June. Youkilis and Manny were the most consistent.

July? Manny was the best hitter up to that month, but the team decided they couldn't take his antics any more. He was traded and the Red Sox got Jason Bay in return.

Manny was clearly the superior player. The cleanup spot was going to regress. Fans knew that Bay could not get the team to a championship like Manny.

Youkilis took the cleanup spot. In August, Youkilis hit a .430 OBP, his highest in any month all season. In September, .398 OBP. He also hit 45 RBI's in those months if you're into that stat.

In September, the Red Sox remained likely for a playoff spot. This was when Pedroia emerged as an MVP candidate.

Pedroia did it all. He stole bases, he hit home runs, he even batted cleanup for a couple games.

Most will say that September is the most important month of the regular season. A common misconception.

A win always counts as one win, no matter what the month. Consistency is the most important thing.

Youkilis was at the top of his game all year long. Not to knock on Pedroia.

Youkilis had a higher OBP and SLG than Pedroia. He had the better first half and he saved the lineup in the second half.

Youkilis in a way filled in for Lowell and Manny. He made up for losses of Ortiz and Drew.

It's a miracle that a player of Pedroia's size who was thought of to have the potential to be a mediocre second baseman at best when he was in the minors.

But when you think about what Youkilis did to get here, know that he was even less likely to make it to the show.

Pedroia and Youkilis have changed the image of the team with their high intensity attitudes and hitting.

Youkilis gets the edge however because of his consistency and coming through when his talented teammates had left him.

Congrats to Pedroia for winning MVP. But Youkilis is the deserving winner of MVP on the Red Sox.