1916 AL Stargell Award

The Boston Red Sox won their second straight pennant and World Series. It was already their fourth Series victory, the most of any team to this point. It was a remarkable victory, for they had sold their best player, Tris Speaker, to the Indians in the off-season.
Without Speaker, the Red Sox offense was below average. But their pitching staff was great. They had the league's best pitcher, a 21-year-old kid named Babe Ruth. And Ruth hit pretty well, too, in a limited number of at bats.

Offensive Positions (LF, CF, RF, 1B)

			AVG	OBA	SLU	AB	HIT	DB	TP	HR	RUN	RBI	BB	SB	OPS
CF	T SPEAKER	CLE	386	470	502	546	211	41	8	2	102	79	82	35	972
CF	T COBB	DET	371	452	493	542	201	31	10	5	113	68	78	68	944
LF	J JACKSON	CHI	341	393	495	592	202	40	21	3	91	78	46	24	888
CF	A STRUNK	PHI	316	393	421	544	172	30	9	3	71	49	66	21	814
LF	B VEACH	DET	306	367	433	566	173	33	15	3	92	91	52	24	800
LF	H FELSCH	CHI	300	341	427	546	164	24	12	7	73	70	31	13	768
CF	B SHOTTON	STL	282	391	343	618	174	23	6	1	97	36	111	41	738

1916 American League

Boston Red Sox
Chicago White Sox
Cleveland Indians
Detroit Tigers
New York Yankees
Philadelphia Athletics
St. Louis Browns
Washington Senators

         The Cleveland Indians were a team in upheaval. Two years before, in 1914, they had hit rock bottom, finishing almost 50 games out of first place. Their legendary player-manager Nap Lajoie (after whom the team was named) was given a friendly dismissal, and the team was renamed as the Indians. Their other superstar, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, was traded to the White Sox midway through the 1915 season. After the season, star Tris Speaker was purchased from the Red Sox.
        The move turned out to be great for Cleveland, though ultimately fatal for Joe Jackson. Next year the Indians finished in third place - though the White Sox, led by Jackson, won the World Series. In 1919, Jackson became involved in the Black Sox scandal, for which he received a lifetime banishment. That same year, Speaker was named the Indians' manager, and in 1920 Cleveland won its first World Series.
        Speaker, in his first year with Cleveland, was clearly the best player in the AL. The other great outfielders, Jackson and Ty Cobb, also had great numbers, though not quite as good as Speaker. And no one was a better defensive player than the Grey Eagle. He is my choice for the MVP.
        Both Jackson's White Sox and Cobb's Tigers were fine teams, finishing in second and third place, respectively. I think Cobb was a little better than Jackson on both offense and defense, and gets the edge. Speaker, Cobb, and Jackson were the top three players in the AL.

Defensive Positions (2B, 3B, SS, CA)

			AVG	OBA	SLU	AB	HIT	DB	TP	HR	RUN	RBI	BB	SB	OPS
2B	E COLLINS	CHI	308	405	396	545	168	14	17	0	87	52	86	40	802
2B	D PRATT	STL	267	331	391	596	159	35	12	5	64	103	54	26	722
3B	L GARDNER	BOS	308	372	387	493	152	19	7	2	47	62	48	12	759
3B	F BAKER	NY	269	344	428	360	97	23	2	10	46	52	36	15	772
SS	R PECKINPAUGH	NY	255	332	346	552	141	22	8	4	65	58	62	18	678
CA	W SCHANG	PHI	266	358	420	338	90	15	8	7	41	38	38	14	778

The Chicago White Sox had been known in the past as "The Hitless Wonders". Now, they had acquired both Joe Jackson and Eddie Collins, giving them a formidable one-two punch in their lineup. Collins was still clearly the best infielder in the league.
Del Pratt was an interesting player. He was an outstanding defensive second baseman, and a decent hitter. He was extremely durable; from 1913-1916, he missed only one game out of 631. This year, he somehow managed to lead the AL in RBI despite underwhelming hitting stats. He must have had a tonne of hits with runners on base. Despite the impressive season, I think Collins was clearly the better player.