Just thinking about this today for whatever reason. I understand back in the day you had the American League and the National League. They played each other only for the World Series (and some exhibition games) and they had their own AL and NL officials. As such, they were pretty much independent of each other, save for the bulk of the rulebook, and I can see the logic in awarding two MVPs, two Cy Youngs, two Rookie of the Years, etc.

Now in the past twenty plus years, we have seen interleague play increase from just one team a year to now being a very decent chunk of your team's schedule. Long gone are the days of pulling up to the bar and talking hypothetically about who would win in a matchup of the AL Cy Young vs the NL MVP... while that matchup might not happen every year, the likelihood of two great players facing each other during their careers is almost a certainty. Similarly, the umpires have not been separated since before 2000, so there is no AL "style" or NL "style" of game.

And now, in 2022, the designated hitter has made its way into the National League. Regardless whether you like the designated hitter or not, this is one more way the two leagues have become more similar. However, we still award two separate but equal MVPs, two separate but equal Cy Youngs, etc. You don't see this in other sports -- they don't have a Eastern Conference MVP and Western Conference MVP in the NBA where two people share the rights as the top player of the league. They don't do that in hockey; they don't do that in the NFL. (And yes, they do special awards from week to week or month or in the playoffs that are split this way, but I am talking about the whole year.)

Is it time to see those awards combine into a single MLB award? Or do you like having two separate awards? I could see compelling arguments for keeping tradition going, for having more players being acknowledged for their contributions, the bulk of the schedules are still separated and therefore should still be awarded separately (although isn't this the case for most leagues?) Interested if anyone has an opinion on this and a reason (or reasons why.)

I think I am currently undecided as this whole thought didn't occur to me until this afternoon while I was cleaning and imagining Beardown narrating my life as if it were Stranger Than Fiction. I'll think about it for a bit and then weigh in.

_________________
"All crowds boycotting football games shouldn't care who sings or takes a knee because they aren't watching." - Nas

Newper, I think you're wasting your time and your energy ruminating on this topic. It's worked very well for decades, just keep it the way it is.

It's kind of similar to the United States. Younger people don't recognize the leagues as separate entities just as they don't recognize the states as such. I think the only thing we can do is eliminate the Electoral College and the Senate.

_________________
His mind is not for rent to any God or government.

_________________
"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Nope.

_________________