In 1988, the Associated Press began naming an overall player of the year. A nationwide panel of writers and broadcasters was polled and the results were tallied by the Associated Press to determine an overall player of the year in the major leagues.
Listed below in chronological order are the past recipients of the prestigious Associated Press Player of the Year Award, which was discontinued in 2001, as researched by Baseball Almanac.
"Trust me, I'd much rather be in the Yankees' shoes." - Todd Helton (CBS News, Rockies' Helton Voted Top Player, 11/02/2000)
AP Player of the Yearby the Associated Press © |
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Year | Player of the Year | POS | LG | Team | Roster |
1988 | Jose Canseco | OF | AL | Oakland |
1989 | Kevin Mitchell | OF | NL | San Francisco |
1990 | Cecil Fielder | 1B | AL | Detroit |
1991 | Cal Ripken, Jr. | SS | AL | Baltimore |
1992 | Barry Bonds | OF | NL | Pittsburgh |
1993 | Barry Bonds | OF | NL | San Francisco |
1994 | Jeff Bagwell | 1B | NL | Houston |
1995 | Greg Maddux | P | NL | Atlanta |
1996 | Alex Rodriguez | SS | AL | Seattle |
1997 | No Award Given | -- | -- | -- |
1998 | Mark McGwire | 1B | NL | St. Louis |
1999 | Pedro Martinez | P | AL | Boston |
2000 | Todd Helton | 1B | NL | Colorado |
2001 | Award Discontinued | -- | -- | -- |
Year | Player of the Year | POS | LG | Team | Roster |
AP Player of the Year | Baseball Awards Menu |
The quotation (top) by Todd Helton was made after The Toddfather won the Associated Press Player of the Year Award in 2000, and was made in reference to the New York Yankees winning the 2000 World Series.
Barry Bonds, who won with two different ballclubs (Pirates in 1992 / Giants in 1993), was the only recipient of the Associated Press Player of the Year Award to win it twice!
Imagine for a moment having to select a single player as the "Player of the Year." Who would you have chosen? Do you agree or disagree with the players chosen by the Associated Press? Share your opinion on Baseball Fever.