Toronto Blue Jays’ Jose Bautista crowned second straight Hank Aaron Award – MLB News
Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays has proved the last year was no fluke, as he remained the most valuable player in the American League and won the Hank Aaron Award for the second consecutive day.
On Monday, the combined result of the votes from the fans and the panel of the Hall of Famers selected the Blue Jays’ star hitter as the most outstanding offensive performer in the American League during the 2011 season.
Bautista hammered 43 home-runs to lead Major League Baseball for the second straight year. Last year he had to face criticism and various critics considered his performance a fluke. However, the player had removed all the allegations with an outstanding
performance.
He made 103 RBIs and earned a career-high .302 batting average. Bautista was also the MLB leader with 132 walks, .608 slugging average and 1.056 on-base plus slugging average as it was the first time this happened since Barry Bonds led the MLB in all four
categories.
“Jose's performance this year is not only a reflection of his tremendous talent but a testament to his work ethic and determination to be the best player possible. He is a true leader,” said Blue Jays’ manager John Farrell in a statement.
Along with Bautista, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ star Matt Kemp was also awarded in the National League. Kemp was the leader of the NL with 39 home-runs, 126 RBIs, 115 runs and 353 total bases. His .324 batting average was also third in the League.
Before Bautista, Barry Bonds and New York Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez had won this award twice in a row.
Last year Bautista smashed 54 home-runs and became the second Blue Jays after Carlos Delgado to win this award.
“I am extremely happy for Jose,” said Toronto general manager Alex Anthopoulos. “He has established himself as a premier player in this league.”
The Award was started in 1999 to honour the legendary player Hank Aaron after he broke Babe Ruth’s home-run record. Bautista had a tremendous season and wholeheartedly deserved this award.
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