In perhaps the peak season of Ken Griffey Jr.’s illustrious career, it’s impossible to have a problem with his MVP award as the Mariners returned to the playoffs.
While the 1998 home run chase is often seen as the catalyst for reviving baseball’s popularity in the U.S., it’s often forgotten that the previous season offered a preview of sorts as the long ball returned in a way previously unforeseen.
Spearheading this were two slugging powerhouses atop the American League in the Seattle Mariners and then-Cleveland Indians, both of whom would qualify for the postseason.
Led by Ken Griffey Jr., the Mariners set the record for most home runs by a team in a single season (which has since fallen) with 264, headlining a season that solidified the return, or perhaps, true initial ascendance of dominant power hitting across the league.
Despite this, it’s impossible to tell the story of 1997 without mentioning some incredible pitching performances, with that of eventual Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens chief among them. As impressive as an array of the league’s hitters were, the few hurlers who could neutralize them stand out as incredibly impressive.
Beyond Griffey and Clemens, plenty of other players posted memorable campaigns in 1997, with four of the real-life top 10 in MVP voting consisting of 40-home run hitters.
Here’s a look at the voting results from 1997, with a total of 29 players receiving at least one vote on an MVP ballot:
Perhaps surprising to no one, Ken Griffey Jr. was the unanimous winner of the 1997 AL MVP, with towering stats that make his victory hard to argue with, even 28 years later.
The results were also notable for Orioles closer Randy Myers placing fourth in MVP voting on the heels of a 45-save season with a 1.51 ERA. While undoubtedly impressive, Myers and a few others in the real-life top 10 will not make an appearance in my rankings.
Here’s a look at how I would have filled out my MVP ballot, alongside the changes to the real-life results and some season statistics.
10. Bernie Williams, New York Yankees, CF (+7)
Season stats: 5.5 WAR, 107 R, 167 H, 35 2B, 6 3B, 21 HR, 100 RBI, 15 SB, 73 BB, 80 K, .328/.408/.544/.952, 147 OPS+
It’s retrospectively hard to imagine how anyone involved with the turn of the century Yankees could be underrated given their four World Series titles in five years, but Bernie Williams happens to fit the description.
With his contributions both in 1997 and throughout his career overshadowed by the likes of Derek Jeter and Tino Martinez, Williams continued his ascent into becoming one of the game’s most complete hitters in 1997.
Posting elite power-speed numbers, Williams managed 35 doubles and 21 home runs to go along with six triples and 15 stolen bases – this production paired with just 80 strikeouts to 73 walks, amounting to an excellent .408 OBP and .544 slugging percentage.
One of the era’s premier switch hitters, Williams showed little variance in contact between his two sides, but was clearly more of a power threat as a right-handed hitter, posting 31 walks to 22 strikeouts alongside a 1.039 OPS against left-handed pitching.
Williams was also lethal on the road and in the second half of the season, managing a .353 batting average away from Yankee Stadium along with a 1.016 OPS after the All-Star break.
9. Randy Johnson, Seattle Mariners, SP (+2)
Season stats: 8.0 WAR, 20-4, 2.28 ERA, 5 CG, 2 CGSHO, 213 IP, 77 BB, 291 K, 197 ERA+, 1.052 WHIP
In a year where offenses were dominant across the board, it’s hard to find a pitcher that made a bigger difference than The Big Unit.
Despite having one of the best offenses of the decade in 1996, the Mariners missed out on the postseason, which can largely be attributed to a pitching staff that suffered immensely as Johnson missed most of the season with an injury.
Returning in 1997 for what would end up being his final full season in Seattle, Johnson was a menace, winning 20 of his 24 decisions while fanning an incredible 291 batters in just 213 innings.
Though Johnson’s 30 games and 29 starts were behind many of his contemporaries, the lanky lefty still managed to safely eclipse 200 innings while posting an MLB-best 12.3 strikeouts per nine innings rate. Additionally, Johnson surrendered only 147 hits, good for an AL-leading 6.2 hits per nine innings rate.
While he finished as a Cy Young runner-up to Roger Clemens, Johnson’s 1997 season was demonstrably valuable for a team that needed a consistent arm more than perhaps any other club in baseball.
8. Tino Martinez, New York Yankees, 1B (-6)
Season stats: 5.1 WAR, 96 R, 176 H, 31 2B, 44 HR, 141 RBI, 3 SB, 75 BB, 75 K, .296/.371/.577/.948, 143 OPS+
In a steep decline from his real-life runner-up finish, Martinez ranks eighth on my ballot on the heels of an impressive season greatly aided by lofty counting stats.
Though the 44 home runs and 141 RBI are impossible to ignore, Martinez didn’t put up too many eye-catching numbers elsewhere, with the rest of his season’s accomplishments eclipsed by other AL players who were more overlooked at the time.
With that said, Martinez truly posted an impressive season for a Yankees team that still made the postseason. He particularly clobbered right-handed pitching, slashing .314/.396/.636/1.033 along with 32 of his 44 home runs on the season, making him one of the most feared bats in the junior circuit throughout the season.
This particularly extended to parks outside of New York, with Martinez posting a .998 OPS with 26 home runs on the road, boosting a club that actually finished with a stronger road record than home record in 1997.
7. Jim Thome, Cleveland Indians, 1B (-1)
Season stats: 5.5 WAR, 104 R, 142 H, 25 2B, 40 HR, 102 RBI, 1 SB, 120 BB, 146 K, .286/.423/.579/1.001, 156 OPS+
Coming off a 1996 season at third base in which Thome was evidently underappreciated in MVP voting, I have him a spot down from his real-life finish in 1997, Thome’s first campaign as a full-time first baseman.
The eventual American League champion in 1997, Cleveland maintained a stacked offensive unit despite the loss of Albert Belle, with Thome chief among the contributors. In addition to 65 extra-base hits, Thome led the AL walks with 120, helping to offset a 23.3% strikeout rate.
A future 600 home run-hitter, Thome posted the first 40 home run effort of his career, with the power coming at the expense of right-handed pitching at a very disproportionate level. Though Thome’s batting average only differed by 15 points between righties and lefties, he hit 36 of his 40 home runs facing right-handers, leading to an OPS difference of over 300 points.
Helping to offset some of the extreme splits, Thome was known as a hitter that rose to the occasion in 1997, posting a 1.033 OPS in high leverage situations while managing a 1.060 OPS in innings 7-9 throughout the season.
6. Roger Clemens, Toronto Blue Jays, SP (+4)
Season stats: 11.9 WAR, 21-7, 2.05 ERA, 9 CG, 3 CGSHO, 264 IP, 68 BB, 292 K, 222 ERA+, 1.030 WHIP
After the Boston Red Sox decided to part ways with Clemens following his age-33 season, The Rocket made them pay in one of the worst ways imaginable, signing on with the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays and amassing one of the finest seasons of his career and of the decade.
While Cy Young voters at the time were likely drawn to Clemens’ extremely impressive 21-7 record and 2.05 ERA, there’s much more to love about this season. Living up to his penchant for durability, Clemens led all of baseball with 264 innings pitched, tossing nine complete games while completing shutouts in three of them.
In addition to striking out 292 batters, Clemens was simply unfazed by the power production occurring across the league, surrendering just nine home runs in his 264 innings of work. Routinely unhittable for much of the season, Clemens led MLB in ERA+ and FIP, the latter in which Clemens posted a 2.25, showing little difference from his stellar ERA.
The Rocket was also the AL leader in WHIP, helping secure the second consecutive Cy Young Award win for a Blue Jays pitcher after Pat Hentgen won the award in 1996. Though undoubtedly immensely valuable, Clemens’ performance did not translate to team success, with the Blue Jays finishing well out of a playoff spot with a 76-86 record.
5. Edgar Martínez, Seattle Mariners, DH (+9)
Season stats: 6.2 WAR, 104 R, 179 H, 35 2B, 28 HR, 108 RBI, 2 SB, 119 BB, 86 K, .330/.456/.554/1.009, 165 OPS+
Enshrined into Cooperstown on the virtue of being one of the game’s most consistent and feared hitters of his era, 1997 was no different for Edgar Martínez, playing an integral role on a Mariners team that returned to October.
Building off of a stellar 1996 campaign, Martínez managed over 6 WAR yet again, slightly improving on his home run and RBI total while posting an OPS north of 1 for the third consecutive season.
Perhaps adding to his value this season, Martínez was a righty hitter posting extreme reverse splits in 1997, slashing .345/.469/.596/.1.065 with 24 of his 28 home runs against fellow right-handers. The 34-year-old did this while remaining one of the game’s toughest outs, managing 33 more walks than strikeouts.
Though Seattle ultimately won their division by six games, Martínez’s stellar finish to the season aided the Mariners to a 15-10 record in the season’s final month. Martínez was 25-for-70 in September with eight extra-base hits and a 1.037 OPS, fittingly concluding an excellent campaign worthy of more recognition than it initially received.
4. Iván Rodríguez, Texas Rangers, C (+12)
Season stats: 6.5 WAR, 98 R, 187 H, 34 2B, 20 HR, 77 RBI, 7 SB, 38 BB, 89 K, .313/.360/.484/.844, 114 OPS+
It’s clear that on the surface, especially in an offensive era, Pudge’s numbers don’t exactly jump off the page, which makes it easy to understand why Rodríguez had a 16th-place finish in real-life voting.
Despite a few apparent shortcomings compared to others below him on the list, Pudge quietly compiled the best offensive season of his career up to that point, slugging 58 extra-base hits to go with a .313 batting average, winning his fourth straight Silver Slugger as he cemented his status as the premier hitting catcher in the junior circuit.
That’s of course, in addition to Rodríguez already clearly being the premier defensive catcher in the AL and perhaps all of baseball.
After posting an unreal 3.3 defensive WAR in 1996, Rodríguez finished the season as the game’s most valuable defensive player, regardless of position, compiling another 3 dWAR in 1997.
In addition to excelling offensively at a light-hitting position, Rodríguez was firmly in his defensive prime, doing it all and some for a Rangers team that ultimately finished 77-85 and well out of playoff contention.
3. Nomar Garciaparra, Boston Red Sox, SS (+5)
Season stats: 6.6 WAR, 122 R, 209 H, 44 2B, 11 3B, 30 HR, 98 RBI, 22 SB, 35 BB, 92 K, .306/.342/.534/.875, 123 OPS+
Though not quite the otherworldly season put up by Álex Rodríguez the year prior, rookie Nomar Garciaparra still compiled both one of the most impressive seasons of the decade by a rookie and by a shortstop in 1997.
Although he played 24 games in 1996, this year marked Garciaparra’s first full season, immediately emerging as an elite slugger by posting 85 extra-base hits while also becoming one of the sport’s finest contact bats.
Never known to be an offensively prioritized position, Garciaparra was immediately a star hitter and defender at shortstop, posting 2 defensive WAR in addition to his stellar offensive numbers.
At age 23, Garciaparra was the AL leader in both hits and triples, while leading all of baseball with 684 at-bats. He posted a .936 OPS on the road, and also figured as a reverse split hitter, managing a .320 average and .898 OPS when facing right-handed pitching.
Though the efforts fell well short for a Red Sox team that ultimately finished 78-84, Garciaparra catapulted himself into the MVP race thanks to an incredible month of August, hitting .372 with a 1.033 OPS alongside eight home runs and seven stolen bases.
2. Frank Thomas, Chicago White Sox, 1B/DH (+1)
Season stats: 7.3 WAR, 110 R, 184 H, 35 2B, 35 HR, 125 RBI, 1 SB, 109 BB, 69 K, .347/.456/.611/1.067, 181 OPS+
With two MVP awards and stellar 1995 and 1996 seasons to follow, Frank Thomas was already on a Hall of Fame trajectory heading into 1997, one he cemented with a campaign arguably just as impressive as his MVP seasons.
A feared slugger with plate presence that seemingly only Barry Bonds could outdo, Thomas walked 40 more times than he struck out in 1997, smashing another 35 home runs while securing the first and lone batting title of his career, hitting an incredible .347 on the season.
Thomas was a league leader in a plethora of other areas as well – he led all of baseball with a .456 OBP, while leading the AL in OPS, OPS+ and Win Probability Added.
Though clearly dangerous against everyone, Thomas was especially punishing against lefties and away from then-Comiskey Park II. Against left-handers, 22 of The Big Hurt’s 38 hits went for extra bases, contributing to an unreal 1.228 OPS. On the road, Thomas hit .373 with 19 home runs, compiling a 1.136 OPS.
Thomas also posted video game numbers in clutch situations, hitting 17 of his 35 home runs with two outs while managing a .417 batting average and 1.273 OPS with runners in scoring position. The harder you look at his 1997 season, the more impressive it gets.
Despite how incredible The Big Hurt was in 1997, the voters certainly got the winner of the award right.
1. Ken Griffey Jr., Seattle Mariners, CF (No change)
Season stats: 9.1 WAR, 125 R, 185 H, 34 2B, 56 HR, 147 RBI, 15 SB, 76 BB, 121 K, .304/.382/.646/.1.028, 165 OPS+
Coming into his age-27 season with four top-10 MVP finishes, Ken Griffey Jr. coasted to a unanimous MVP award in 1997 in a campaign that in many ways is the best example of peak Griffey.
Offering a preview of the 1998 home run chase, Griffey and Mark McGwire, who split the season between the Oakland Athletics and St. Louis Cardinals, flirted with breaking Roger Maris’ single-season home run record of 61 in this season, falling five long balls short but still leading the AL in the category.
The dominance went far behind the long ball for Junior in ’97 – he led the AL in WAR, runs, slugging percentage, total bases and intentional walks, while his 147 RBI was tops in all of MLB.
Leading the AL in offensive WAR with 7.6, Griffey remained an elite defender at one of the game’s most demanding positions, posting another 1.9 defensive WAR after leading all of baseball in the category in 1996.
Griffey showed split differences along traditional lines, proving to be more dangerous both at home and against right-handed pitching. The slugger hit .322 with a 1.071 OPS within the confines of the cavernous Kingdome, while hitting 42 of his 56 home runs against righties alongside a dominant 1.104 OPS.
Outside of a somewhat sluggish July, Griffey was remarkably consistent throughout the entire season, with a power-packed August and September helping solidify Seattle’s return to the postseason after a one-year absence.
Though there were plenty of remarkable contributions in the AL in 1997, they coincided with the offensive peak of one of the game’s best sluggers of all-time. Maybe the stats focused on would have been different, but make no mistake – Griffey would still win this award in a landslide if this vote were to be held today.
Thank you for reading, as I’ll continue this series with a look at the 1997 NL MVP race.
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