Typically, the blogger’s alliance has been very similar to the official votes cast for awards and hall induction.  In one of the few moments of disagreement, the BBA voted last year to induct Barry Larkin and Jeff Bagwell.  Barry Larkin would be voted in by the official body, leaving Jeff Bagwell to return to the ballot again this year after a 56% showing last year.

The Bloggers Alliance opinion has not changed and the lone person to be selected on the BBA ballot this season is Jeff Bagwell.

The 1991 Rookie Of The Year, Bagwell spent his 15 year Major League career in Houston, primarily playing first base for the Astros during a time period that the team enjoyed some substantial success.  A part of the “Killer B’s”, Bagwell would hit 449 home runs and collect 2,314 hits while driving in 1,529 runs during his career.  He would put a Most Valuable Player Award on his shelf in 1994, be selected for four All Star rosters and pick up three Silver Slugger and one Gold Glove award.

Per the requirements of the official vote, a player would need to appear on at least 75% of the ballots cast in order to be elected to the Hall Of Fame.  While a few players were able to come close this season, Bagwell was the only player to reach the required amount.  The full list of players that received votes follows:

Jeff Bagwell 76%

Craig Biggo 69%
Mike Piazza 69%
Barry Bonds 62%
Tim Raines 62%
Roger Clemens 56%
Edgar Martinez 41%
Alan Trammell 40%
Mark McGwire 35%
Curt Schilling 34%
Dale Murphy 32%
Larry Walker 32%
Jack Morris 32%
Lee Smith 25%
Kenny Lofton 21%
Sammy Sosa 21%
Don Mattingly 18%
Fred McGriff 15%
Rafael Palmerio 15%
Bernie Williams 4%
David Wells 4%
Sandy Alomar 3%
Julio Franco 1%

The Baseball Bloggers Alliance’s vote has no impact on the official vote taken by the Baseball Writers of America.  However, the BBA has often been a predictor of major awards granted by the writers.

In what proved to be the easier of the two decisions, the Alliance pulled together to award Buster Posey for his stellar season leading the San Fransisco Giants to an eventual world championship.  Posey had an amazing season for any player, let alone a catcher.  Posey’s hard fought season earned him a batting title, an impressive slashline (.336/.408/.549), 24 home runs and 103 runs batted in.  His impressive numbers earned him 70% of the BBA vote and the acknowledgement as the premier player in the National League.

The American League vote was a bit more of a debate and a fairly close one.  As the blogs weighed in, only two players received votes.  The vote split leaving Mike Trout of the Angels with a decisive 62% of the vote, edging out the Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera.  Mike Trout becomes the first player to be acknowledged by the BBA with the Stan Musial and Willie Mays Awards in the same season.  As impressive as Miguel Cabrera was winning the triple crown, the bloggers of the BBA were quick to point out how impressive Trout’s all around numbers were.

Previous Stan Musial Award Winners
2011: Jose Bautista, Toronto; Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers
2010: Josh Hamilton, Texas; Joey Votto, Cincinnati
2009: Joe Mauer, Minnesota; Albert Pujols, St. Louis

The Baseball Bloggers Alliance was formed in the fall of 2009 to encourage cooperation and collaboration between baseball bloggers of all major league teams as well as those that follow baseball more generally. As of this writing, the organization consists of 232 blogs spanning all 30 major league squads as well as general baseball writing.

The BBA is organized under a similar structure as the Baseball Writers of America, where blogs that follow the same team are combined into “chapters” and only two votes from the chapter on an award are counted. The blog chapters that are focused on general baseball were allowed two votes as well, which they could use both on the same league or split between the two leagues.

The Walter Johnson Award honors the pitcher in each league that excelled far beyond anyone else.  This year’s vote was not unanimous like last season’s, but it was a decision that many of the group could still agree on.

Earlier this year, Craig Kimbrel became the first person to repeat in an award category for the BBA and he was closely followed by this year’s American League Walter Johnson Award winner.  Justin Verlander grabbed his second consecutive nod as the top hurler in the American League.  Verlander led his league in numerous categories including complete games (6), innings pitched (238.1), strikeouts (239), and ERA+ (160).  He continues to be the premier hurler in the American League and the bloggers acknowledged this with 67% of this year’s vote.

The bloggers recognized Mets’ knuckleballer RA Dickey’s 2012 season by awarding him the Walter Johnson Award in the National League.  After compiling 20 wins and leading the league in strikeouts (230), innings pitched (233.2), games started (33), complete games (5) and shutouts (3).  Dickey’s career revitalization in 2012 has led him to the apex of the league.

Previous Walter Johnson Award Winners
2011: Justin Verlander, Detroit; Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers
2010: Felix Hernadez, Seattle; Roy Halladay, Philadelphia
2009: Zack Greinke, Kansas City; Tim Lincecum, San Francisco

The Baseball Bloggers Alliance was formed in the fall of 2009 to encourage cooperation and collaboration between baseball bloggers of all major league teams as well as those that follow baseball more generally. As of this writing, the organization consists of 232 blogs spanning all 30 major league squads as well as general baseball writing.

The BBA is organized under a similar structure as the Baseball Writers of America, where blogs that follow the same team are combined into “chapters” and only two votes from the chapter on an award are counted. The blog chapters that are focused on general baseball were allowed two votes as well, which they could use both on the same league or split between the two leagues.

This year’s vote was an easy decision for the members of the group and they honored a player for a second consecutive year in the same category for the first time.

In 2011, Atlanta Braves closer Craig Kimbrel was awarded both the Goose Gossage and Willie Mays awards.  This season, Kimbrel received 87% of the vote to claim his second consecutive award as the National League’s premier relief pitcher.  He would make his second consecutive All Star appearance this season while leading the Senior Circuit in saves with 42.

The American League vote was equally lopsided as Fernando Rodney of the Tampa Bay Rays received an identical 87% of the vote in his league.  Rodney would not lead his league in saves, finishing with 48 to Jim Johnson’s 51, but he would do so with a minuscule 0.60 earned run average and prove to be dominant throughout the season.

Previous Goose Gossage Award Winners
2011: Jose Valverde, Detroit; Craig Kimbrel, Atlanta
2010: Rafael Soriano, Tampa Bay; Brian Wilson, San Francisco

The Baseball Bloggers Alliance was formed in the fall of 2009 to encourage cooperation and collaboration between baseball bloggers of all major league teams as well as those that follow baseball more generally. As of this writing, the organization consists of 232 blogs spanning all 30 major league squads as well as general baseball writing.

The BBA is organized under a similar structure as the Baseball Writers of America, where blogs that follow the same team are combined into “chapters” and only two votes from the chapter on an award are counted. The blog chapters that are focused on general baseball were allowed two votes as well, which they could use both on the same league or split between the two leagues.

This year’s vote yielded the only unanimous decision in all five categories for the group.

In the American League, Mike Trout was awarded the honors by every voting member of the BBA.  Trout, who maintained his rookie status in Major League Baseball for 2012, led the league in runs (129), stolen bases (49) and OPS+ (171).  In addition, his slash line of .326/.399/.564 kept him among league leaders.  Trout caps an all star season with recognition from the group as the top youngster in the American League.

Searching for a counterpart in the National League led to some discussion.  When the dust settled, however, it was Washington National’s phenom Bryce Harper that walked away with 66% of the vote and the recognition of the largest collection of bloggers online. Harper’s season was impressive, with a slash line of .270/.340/.477 and an All Star appearance of his own.  His 22 home runs and 59 runs batted in were impressive for the 19 year old outfielder, despite being overshadowed by Trout’s impressive rookie campaign.

Previous Willie Mays Award Winners
2011: Eric Hosmer, Kansas City/Jeremy Hellickson Tampa Bay (tie); Craig Kimbrel, Atlanta
2010: Neftali Feliz, Texas; Buster Posey, San Francisco
2009: Andrew Bailey, Oakland; Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh

The Baseball Bloggers Alliance was formed in the fall of 2009 to encourage cooperation and collaboration between baseball bloggers of all major league teams as well as those that follow baseball more generally. As of this writing, the organization consists of 232 blogs spanning all 30 major league squads as well as general baseball writing.

The BBA is organized under a similar structure as the Baseball Writers of America, where blogs that follow the same team are combined into “chapters” and only two votes from the chapter on an award are counted. The blog chapters that are focused on general baseball were allowed two votes as well, which they could use both on the same league or split between the two leagues.

The Connie Mack Award is given annually by the alliance to the top managers in each league.  This year’s vote was a landslide in the National League and the closest of all the award votes in the American League.

Davey Johnson, who led the Washington Nationals into the post-season for the first time in the past 31 years as a franchise, was acknowledged by the group as the premier skipper of the Senior Circuit.  The Nationals franchise, then known as the Montreal Expos, last appeared in the playoffs in 1981.  Johnson led an exciting group of young players to the best record in Major League Baseball this season, winning 98 games and a division title in a highly competitive National League East division.

Davey Johnson received 71% of the vote throughout the BBA.

In the closest vote out of all five awards to be given by the BBA this season, Bob Melvin of the Oakland A’s took the victory over his counterpart, Buck Showalter of the Baltimore Orioles, by a narrow 2% margin.

Two of the most surprising teams in all of baseball earned their managers plenty of votes before the Oakland skipper emerged as the victor.  Melvin would lead the A’s to the second best record in the American League, winning 94 games and holding the defending American League champion Texas Rangers off, forcing the Rangers to qualify for the postseason as a wild card.

The ballots for the BBA Awards are completed prior to the end of the regular season annually.  While both managers found regular season success and led their teams forward into the postseason, both teams would be eliminated in their respective Division Series appearances to Detroit and St. Louis.

Previous Connie Mack Award Winners
2011: Joe Maddon, Tampa; Kirk Gibson, Arizona
2010: Ron Washington, Texas; Bud Black, San Diego
2009: Mike Scioscia, Los Angeles of Anaheim; Jim Tracy, Colorado

The Baseball Bloggers Alliance was formed in the fall of 2009 to encourage cooperation and collaboration between baseball bloggers of all major league teams as well as those that follow baseball more generally. As of this writing, the organization consists of 232 blogs spanning all 30 major league squads as well as general baseball writing.

The BBA is organized under a similar structure as the Baseball Writers of America, where blogs that follow the same team are combined into “chapters” and only two votes from the chapter on an award are counted. The blog chapters that are focused on general baseball were allowed two votes as well, which they could use both on the same league or split between the two leagues.

July 13, 2012–The Baseball Bloggers Alliance today named Hardball Talk lead blogger Craig Calcaterra as the winner of the 2012 Joe Posnanski Award, honoring the top internet writer of the year.  Besides being the lead voice at Hardball Talk, the baseball blog of NBCSports, Calcaterra can also be found interacting with his readers via his Twitter account.

The Writer of the Year Award was created by the BBA to honor those writers who, beyond being exceptionally great at their craft, have taken to the internet in a full and vigorous fashion.  Voters were instructed to take into account not only the writing abilities of the nominees but also their online presense, whether via blog or other media, as well as how they interact with their followers and fans.

“It seems only appropriate to honor Craig Calcaterra, as he could be seen as ‘living the dream’ for many bloggers,” said outgoing BBA president Daniel Shoptaw.  “Calcaterra quit lawyering, began blogging and quickly rose to a place of prominence.  What blogger wouldn’t want to follow in those footsteps?”

Voters were allowed to vote for three of the five nominees, casting a first, second and third place ballot.  Those ballots were tabulated based on a 5-3-1 point scale.

Calcaterra received 276 points, which included 32 first-place votes from the 119 ballots cast.  Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports was runner-up with 245 points and Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus third with 209 points.  Dave Cameron of FanGraphs (208) and Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (194) rounded out the ballot.

The Baseball Bloggers Alliance was formed in the fall of 2009 to encourage cooperation and collaboration between baseball bloggers of all major league teams as well as those that follow baseball more generally.  You can follow the BBA on Facebook and Twitter or contact them at baseballbloggersalliance@gmail.com

Bill Ivie replaces founder in top slot

July 13, 2012–The Baseball Bloggers Alliance, the top organization of baseball bloggers, today announced that after a polling of the membership, Bill Ivie would replace Daniel Shoptaw as the president of the group.

Ivie, who writes at I70 Baseball and Full Spectrum Baseball, is no stranger to large groups, having been an assignment editor at Baseball Digest in the past, as well as an active member of the United Cardinal Bloggers.  Ivie also is the organizer of Ivie League Productions, under which label the BBA has its weekly show, BBA Baseball Talk featuring David Mitchell.  Ivie’s voice can be heard weekly on Gateway To Baseball Heaven, as part of the Seamheads Podcasting Network.

“It is an honor and a pleasure to accept this position.  Daniel Shoptaw has done an amazing job cultivating this group and I look forward to working with everyone involved to help the organization grow and move forward consistently.”

Shoptaw was the founder of the BBA, starting the group in the fall of 2009 and watching it grow to hundreds of members.  Born out of a couple of personal projects, the Alliance quickly expanded to cover every MLB team and also included blogs with more of a general baseball approach or those that covered a specific aspect of the game, such as fantasy baseball or minor league baseball.

For his part, Shoptaw still plans to be involved with the organization but will focus more of his time on other projects, such as his blog C70 At The Bat and its related podcast Conversations With C70, his leadership of the United Cardinal Bloggers, and his weekly appearances on Gateway To Baseball Heaven.

Shoptaw stated, “It was time to move on.  I appreciate all the members of the BBA and what they have done to strengthen this organization.  It truly is a world-class collection of talent and I’m proud to know all of them.  I’ve known Bill for a long time and I know that he will provide extreme amounts of energy and leadership in this role.  I look forward to seeing what the next few years hold for the Alliance!”

The Baseball Bloggers Alliance can be found on Facebook, on Twitter, or can be reached via email at baseballbloggeralliance@gmail.com.