2011 MLB Silver Slugger Awards: AL and NL Position by Position Reaction

On Tuesday, Major League Baseball honored the best gloves in the league by dishing out Gold Gloves for the 2011 season.

Today is a day to honor the bats, as MLB has handed out the Silver Slugger awards. The list includes a handful of first-time winners, as well as a bunch of players who are used to getting Silver Sluggers at this point.

Why don't we go ahead and discuss the winners?

First Base

American League Winner: Adrian Gonzalez, Boston Red Sox

A Gold Glove yesterday, a Silver Slugger today. Award season is turning out to be a good time for Adrian Gonzalez. He earned his by hitting .338 with 27 homers and 117 RBI. His WAR for the season was 6.6.

Personally, I'm kind of surprised the award didn't go to Miguel Cabrera. He led the majors with a .344 average, hit 30 homers and drove in 105 RBI. He led all major league first basemen with a WAR of 7.3. Feel free to cry foul.

National League Winner: Prince Fielder, Milwaukee Brewers

Fielder is definitely not going to win a Gold Glove any time soon, but this is his second Silver Slugger. He hit .299 with 38 homers and 120 RBI while having a beastly .566 slugging percentage. The award could have gone to Joey Votto, but Fielder is a worthy recipient.

Second Base

American League Winner: Robinson Cano, New York Yankees

Some think Robinson Cano was robbed of a Gold Glove, but he definitely earned his third Silver Slugger. He hit .302 with 28 homers and 118 RBI and led all major league second basemen with a .533 slugging percentage. I personally think the award could have gone to Dustin Pedroia, but I'm not about to complain.

National League Winner: Brandon Phillips, Cincinnati Reds

Brandon Phillips is another guy who gets to take home both a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger this year. He hit an even .300 with 18 homers, 82 RBI and he led all NL second basemen with a 6.0 WAR. Lets hear it for DatDudeBP.

Shortstop

American League Winner: Asdrubal Cabrera, Cleveland Indians

Asdrubal Cabrera cooled off as the season went along, but he still ended up with a .273 average, 25 homers and 92 RBI. I would be fine with Cabrera winning the award, but I think Jhonny Peralta had a better year at the dish. He hit .299 with 21 homers, 86 RBI and posted a 5.2 WAR. That led all AL shortstops.

National League Winner: Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado Rockies

Jose Reyes had this award under wraps in the first half of the season, but Tulo ended up having a better year. He hit .302 with 30 homers, 105 RBI and led all major league shortstops with a WAR of 6.3.

Is it weird that the NL batting champ didn't get the Silver Slugger? A little, but maybe that's what Reyes gets for leaving early to secure the batting title.

Third Base

American League Winner: Adrian Beltre, Texas Rangers

The only third baseman to hit more homers than Adrian Beltre in 2011 was Mark Reynolds, but Beltre played in 31 fewer games. As it is, Beltre finished his year with a .296 average, 32 homers and 105 RBI. Evan Longoria had a higher WAR, but you can't give a Silver Slugger to a guy who hit .244.

National League Winner: Aramis Ramirez, Chicago Cubs

Somewhat quietly, Aramis Ramirez had a good year at the dish, hitting .306 with 26 homers and 93 RBI. I would say that the award should have gone to Pablo Sandoval, but he didn't play in enough games to earn it. Hats off to Ramirez.

Outfield

American League Winner: Curtis Granderson, New York Yankees

No surprise here. Curtis Granderson shattered his career high with 41 home runs, drove in 119 runs and stole 25 bases. He also slugged .552, which is pretty darn good. This is his first Silver Slugger, and he earned it.

American League Winner: Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays

Duh. Jose Bautista led the majors in home runs with 43 and he also led the majors with an OPS of 1.056. The scary part is that he was another guy who cooled down the stretch, which many think is thanks to the blasted Home Run Derby.

American League Winner: Jacoby Ellsbury, Boston Red Sox 

This is another duh. Ellsbury was the best hitter in the American League this year, as he hit .321 with 32 homers and 105 RBI. He also scored 119 runs, stole 39 bases and posted a major league-best 9.4 WAR. He has a Gold Glove, a Silver Slugger and an MVP award could very well be next.

National League Winner: Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers 

It almost seems like a travesty that this is only Ryan Braun's fourth Silver Slugger. I don't care that he's only been in the league for five years, that's too few.

At any rate, Braun got his Silver Slugger by hitting .332 with 33 homers, 111 RBI and 109 runs scored. For good measure, he added 33 stolen bases. In a word, he was awesome.

National League Winner: Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers

Matt Kemp was also awesome in 2011, hitting .324 with 39 homers and 126 RBI. He also scored 115 runs and stole 40 bases. Only Ellsbury had a WAR higher than Kemp's 8.7.

And it was all because Kemp broke up with Rihanna.

National League Winner: Justin Upton, Arizona Diamondbacks 

Justin Upton enjoyed his finest season as a pro in 2011, hitting .289 with 31 homers and 88 RBI. He slugged .529 and posted a WAR of 6.4. This is his first Silver Slugger and I think he deserves it.

Catcher

American League Winner: Alex Avila, Detroit Tigers

Alex Avila had a terrible July, but he was very solid for the bulk of the season. He ended up with a .295 average, 19 homers and 82 RBI. He finished second to Mike Napoli in WAR, but Nap-o-li spent a bit of time at first base.

National League Winner: Brian McCann, Atlanta Braves

Brian McCann really tailed off in the second half of the season, but he still managed to hit .270 with 24 homers and 71 RBI. The award could have easily gone to Yadier Molina, but you can't go wrong with McCann. He's now won five of these things.

Designated Hitter: David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox

Not much to say here. David Ortiz was by far the best DH in the American League this year, hitting .309 with 29 homers and 96 RBI. This makes it five Silver Sluggers for him, too.

Pitcher: Daniel Hudson, Arizona Diamondbacks

Yet another easy choice. Pitchers don't hit much, but Daniel Hudson did pretty darn well with the stick. He hit .277 and drove in 14 runs. He had a WAR of 1.1, which is pretty good when you compare it to, say, Adam Dunn's WAR.

That, for the record, was -2.9.