Robin Yount and the 1982 MVP Vote

Baseball writers are a fickle bunch, especially when it comes to voting for things like MVP and the Hall of Fame. Entering the 1982 season there had been six unanimous winners of the American League MVP Award, the most recent being Reggie Jackson in 1973. Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Robin Yount led the A.L. in hits (210), doubles (46), total bases (367), slugging and OPS. But apparently, that wasn’t enough for one voter, who placed Yount 4^th on his MVP ballot.

                The culprit was Jim Golla of the Toronto Globe and Mail, who had been on the baseball beat for five years after covering horse racing for twenty-two years. Golla had Reggie first, followed by George Brett, then Rollie Fingers, and then Yount.  His reasoning was simple. He had a system.

                “I based my MVP selection on a method I use for handicapping horses,” he said. “Can the horse, or player, carry the weight of a team the distance? Can he carry a team the entire season?

                “Does he do something spectacular in the stretch? Does his lift himself up to the occasion, and maybe make the other horses, or players, around him that much better by forcing the pace?

                “To me, the answer to all those questions was ‘yes” with Reggie Jackson. It wasn’t with Robin Yount.”