2021’s best hitters
Ohtani takes a pair of awards; Albies, Bichette, Harper, and Tatis also shine
Baseball’s awards season began on Sunday, when Gold Gloves were given to 2021’s best fielders at each position in each league.
Plenty of honors are yet to be announced, including the Reliever of the Year Awards on Wednesday, the Silver Sluggers on Thursday, and the Team Gold Gloves on Friday.
But the biggest trophies won’t be handed out until next week, with nightly ceremonies from November 15 to 18 — the Rookies of the Year on Monday, Managers of the Year on Tuesday, Cy Young Awards on Wednesday, and Most Valuable Players on Thursday.
But why stop there?
I created nine awards of my own last year — seeking to fill some of the gaps left by the official designations — and it’s time for me to share the seasonal spirit by announcing my 2021 honorees. The first three awards are unveiled below — featuring winners in both leagues — with more to follow on the next couple of Tuesdays.
Subscribe — free — to Baseball’s Best (and Worst)
A new installment will arrive in your email each Tuesday and Friday morning
Ted Williams Award (batting)
Ted Williams always insisted that he was the greatest hitter in major-league history, and who could argue? His career on-base percentage (OBP) of .482 remains the all-time best, eight percentage points ahead of the closest pursuer, Babe Ruth.
The Ted Williams Award isn’t determined by OBP, but by a slight rescrambling of that three-letter abbreviation. It goes to the batter in each league with the highest number of bases per out (BPO), a comprehensive stat that encompasses Williams’s related abilities to hit for average, hit for power, and, yes, reach base in any way possible.
Bryce Harper posted the best BPO in 2021. The Phillies right fielder hit 73 singles, 42 doubles, a triple, and 35 home runs. He also drew 100 walks, was hit by five pitches, stole 13 bases, lofted four sacrifice flies, and laid down two sacrifice bunts. Grand total: 424 bases.
If we divide 424 by the number of outs Harper made (358), we wind up with 1.184 bases per out, the figure that topped the National League and indeed the majors.
Shohei Ohtani, the twin-threat designated hitter and pitcher for the Angels, led the American League’s Ted Williams Award race with a 1.067 BPO. The top five batters in each league are shown below.
American League
Shohei Ohtani, Angels, 1.067
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays, 1.050
Jose Ramirez, Indians, .956
Kyle Tucker, Astros, .949
Matt Olson, Athletics, .946
National League
Bryce Harper, Phillies, 1.184
Juan Soto, Nationals, 1.129
Fernando Tatis Jr., Padres, 1.081
Joey Votto, Reds, .994
Bryan Reynolds, Pirates, .946
Lou Gehrig Award (scoring)
Few people know it, but Lou Gehrig was the greatest scorer in big-league history.
The Yankees first baseman generated 302 runs in 1931, the only batter ever to surpass 300 — or even, for that matter, 290.
How do I figure that? I borrowed the concept of scoring from hockey, with one minor twist. Hockey adds goals and assists. I add runs and runs batted in, though I then subtract home runs, since a single HR counts in both the R and RBI columns.
Gehrig scored 163 runs and drove home another 185 in 1931. Subtracting his 46 homers yields his total of 302, a record that should be immortal, but actually is unknown.
This year’s big-league leader was Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette, who scored 121 runs, drove in 102, and hit 29 homers. His resulting total of 194 won him the Lou Gehrig Award in the American League.
His counterpart on the National League side is Ozzie Albies of the Braves, who generated 179 runs. Here are the leaders in each league:
American League
Bo Bichette, Blue Jays, 194
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays, 186
Jose Ramirez, Indians, 178
Rafael Devers, Red Sox, 176
Teoscar Hernandez, Blue Jays, 176
National League
Ozzie Albies, Braves, 179
Juan Soto, Nationals, 177
Freddie Freeman, Braves, 172
Paul Goldschmidt, Cardinals, 170
Manny Machado, Padres, 170
Babe Ruth Award (power)
There’s no need to justify naming the power award after Babe Ruth, though the concept itself needs to be explained.
This honor goes to the hitter with the greatest ability to wallop not just homers, but extra-base hits of all varieties. It’s determined by isolated power, an obscure stat that is calculated the same way as batting average, though you substitute extra bases for hits. A batter gets one extra base for each double, two for each triple, and three for each homer. Add them up, then divide by at-bats.
Shohei Ohtani won the American League’s Babe Ruth Award by hitting 26 doubles, eight triples, and 46 home runs. That’s a haul of 180 extra bases, which yields an isolated-power average of .335 when divided by Ohtani’s 537 at-bats.
The National League’s Babe Ruth Award goes to Fernando Tatis Jr. of the Padres, whose isolated power worked out to .328. Below are 2021’s five best power hitters in each league:
American League
Shohei Ohtani, Angels, .335
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays, .290
Brandon Lowe, Rays, .277
Marcus Semien, Blue Jays, .273
Jose Ramirez, Indians, .272
National League
Fernando Tatis Jr., Padres, .328
Bryce Harper, Phillies, .305
Joey Votto, Reds, .297
Max Muncy, Dodgers, .278
Tyler O'Neill, Cardinals, .274