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Jackson Merrill did not win the award for National League Rookie of the Year — the big one, presented by Baseball Writers’ Association of America. Of course he didn’t.
He plays for the San Diego Padres, one of the eight MLB teams west of Dallas. The map of major sports cities in America — available daily on ESPN — begins at the Atlantic shoreline and ends at Dallas, which means many of the media members who vote for awards may be guilty of East Coast Bias.
East Coast Bias is not a myth. West Coast Bias does not have the strength in numbers to make a difference when the voting figures to be close. It’s like the 600 going into the Valley of Death.
(I’ll get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame process in a moment.)
How many of these folks stay up late enough to watch Padres games? How many of them really had a handle on Merrill? Not that the winner, Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes, was a horrible choice. But what Merrill did for the Padres severely outweighs what Skenes did for the Pirates.
That Paul got 23 first-place votes to Jackson’s seven is court-jester comedy. I won’t say the bias was the only reason Merrill lost out, but it was a part of it. It is a living, breathing behemoth.
If you want to call me out for West Coast Bias, go right ahead.
Skenes had terrific numbers on a team that won 76 games and finished last in the NL Central. He was a part of 23 games.
Merrill, playing in 156 games, led major league rookies with 162 hits and 90 RBIs and was tied for first with 24 home runs. He came to spring training as a shortstop, and finished the season as perhaps the most productive center fielder in the game (won the Silver Slugger) at a position foreign to him.
I have a hard time believing the Padres would have made the playoffs without Merrill. He might have been the team’s regular-season MVP (he finished 10th in NL MVP voting; Skenes didn’t get a call), and it carried over into the playoffs, but that is of no matter in this voting process.
All major individual sports award votes are tabulated prior to postseasons. My guess is Jackson would have received more first place votes had the count been voted on after the World Series. Why the rush?
But he still couldn’t have overcome the East Coast thing. I have seen it first-hand, having spent several years as a voter for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The Hall just released its 25 finalists for Canton’s 2025 cast. Not all of them are Hall worthy, but what particular name is popping up like spring weeds? Manning.
Eli Manning. AKA Jughead, son of Archie.
During his career, Eli threw for 366 touchdowns, with 244 interceptions and a passer rating of 84.1. He won 118 games,
Eli of course played for the New York Giants, who play on the East Coast. Won two Super Bowls, so important to voters, who continue to slight Jim Plunkett, who also won two but never even gets a mention.
My highly educated guess is that there will be opposition to Eli going in the Hall on the first ballot once the 50 voters get together prior to the Super Bowl. Only 16 QBs have reached the Hall with a first-ballot ticket.
Jim Plunkett won his two rings with Oakland, which is on the West Coast. He never gets a sniff. When Jughead’s name comes up, some may argue that, while Jim won two, what makes a .500 quarterback so special?
It won’t be said out loud, but the answer will be: HE PLAYED IN NEW YORK.
And it doesn’t hurt that the Mannings spend more time hawking things on TV than Cal Worthington. Think John Madden, who coached the Raiders and about a dozen Hall of Famers to one Super Bowl win, would have made the Hall had he just retired and disappeared instead of becoming a celebrity?
I will hate it, but I can see Jughead getting in.
As for Jackson Merrill? He has so much growth potential, the day may come when larger prizes await.
But, for now, I’ll call him My Rookie of the Year. And I’ll be right. …
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