[AbreuTime]

I'm surprised that Santana didn't get more love from the voters. He won the pitching equivalent of the triple crown, and was the go-to guy once again for them, especially throughout the second half. Twins fans can correct me, but I would rank the Twins candidates as Santana, Mauer, then Morneau, with Santana easily top 3 in the AL.

I don't think Jeter was hands down the most valued player this year. Obviously the numbers are important, and VORP is a decent stat to compare players' value across different positions, but I like to imagine the effect of an injury on the team's success. Santana going down for the year would be more of a loss than Jeter (or Morneau) getting injured. I actually think Jeter's case was helped with half the Yankees lineup getting banged up with injuries, since it increased his relative contribution to the team's success.