Congratulations are in Order

Ryan Braun and Kevin Youkilis each finished 3rd in MVP voting in their respective leagues. Ian Kinsler finished 20th in MVP voting (How the Hell did Jason Bartlett finish ahead of him?).

Here's how the voting broke down for both leagues:

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081118&content_id=3683215&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081117&content_id=3681885&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

The last time 2 Jews finished in the top 5 of MVP voting was 1935 when Buddy Myer finished 4th and Hank Greenberg won. If you consider Lou Boudreau Jewish, it also happened in 1940; Boudreau finished 5th, Greenberg won, and Harry Danning finished 7th. In 1948, Sid Gordon finished 4th and Boudreau won.

There is also some precedence for 3 Jews finishing in the top 25 of MVP voting. In 1938, Greenberg finished 3rd, Myer finished 24th, and Danning finished 16th. In 1939, Greenberg finished 18th, Danning finished 9th, and Morrie Arnovich finished 18th. In 1945, Boudreau finished 8th, Goody Rosen finished 10th, and Greenberg finished 14th. See above for 1940. In 1952, 3 Jews finished in the top 30 for MVP voting. Al Rosen finished 10th, Saul Rogovin finished 27th, and Sid Gordon finished 30th.

Even though Youk didn't win MVP, he was the recipient of the Hank Aaron Award.

Braun won Silver Sluggers. Personally, I think Youk was deserving of Silver Sluggers as well, but if I talk about it it'll sound like I have sour grapes. Morneau had a great season, so it's hard to be too upset. Hell, Miguel Cabrera could have also won. But I will say that Youk should have won another gold glove. You can't compare Carlos Pena's glove work to Youk's. Pena doesn't have Youk's range, picking ability, or versatility. It's really not even close. But that's ancillary. Braun, Youkilis, and Kinsler should all be congratulated for the standout seasons they had in 2008. Here's to an even better 2009!