Baseball fans proved their stupidity Sunday night as they selected Derek Jeter as the 2009 recipient of the AL Hank Aaron Award, given each season to the top hitter in each league. That’s right, baseball fans think Derek Jeter was a better hitter this season than Joe Mauer. Perhaps Bud Selig should re-think his decision to make this award based on a fan vote. Let’s take a deeper look at the numbers:

Derek Jeter had 46 extra-base hits this season, Joe Mauer had 59. Advantage: Mauer. Jeter’s BA/OBP/OPS numbers were .334/.405/.871. Not bad. Mauer’s were .365/.444/1.031. Advantage: Mauer. Mauer played in fewer games than Jeter this season, but he still put up better “counting” numbers in nearly every category. In fact, Mauer beats Jeter in every offensive category other than hits, runs, and stolen bases (which I’ll factor in, even though it’s questionable whether base stealing ability should be considered for a “best hitter” award). Jeter’s 30 stolen bases do not even come close to making up for the huge difference between his and Mauer’s other offensive numbers. Jeter has the advantage in runs scored, but he’s also a leadoff hitter for the best lineup in baseball. If he gets on base, he’s got a great contact hitter behind him to move him over and then 2 of the best sluggers in the game to drive him in. Mauer doesn’t have that going for him, but he still scores a run every 6.4 plate appearances, compared to 6.7 plate appearances for Jeter.

Will someone please attempt to make a valid argument for Jeter winning this award over Mauer? I sure hope the MVP voters aren’t as stupid as the fans, because it would be a shame if Joe Mauer’s amazing season gets overlooked because Derek Jeter didn’t suck as much as some expected this season.

Tags: derek jeter, hank aaron award, joe mauer, mvp