MLBPA Info
Sights and Sounds
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11/12/2004 4:22 PM ET
Bonds chosen as 2004 Player of Year
Thome chosen as Marvin Miller Man of Year
MLBPLAYERS.com
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Barry Bonds was honored with two Players Choice Awards in 2004. (Getty Images)
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Bonds, at age 40, led the National League with a .362 batting average and also had 45 home runs and 101 RBIs despite a record 232 walks this past season. He also became just the third player to hit 700 home runs in his career, joining Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth.
It was the second time that Bonds was honored as the overall Player of the Year in player balloting. He also won the award in 2001 and now has a total of seven Players Choice Awards since being named the NL Outstanding Player in 1992, the inaugural year for the awards.
Bonds' continued accomplishments stand out as more remarkable because of the efforts of opposing clubs to avoid pitching to him. Of his record number of walks, 120 were intentional and he only had 373 official at bats in 147 games.
Bonds, who was also named the NL's Outstanding Player, took the bases given him and rarely missed when given an opportunity. Swinging at just 28 percent of pitchers' offerings and striking out just 41 times, he posted an incredible .609 on-base average and scored 129 runs. He also hit a home run every 8.3 at-bats and batted .394 with runners in scoring position.
Players for the second time named Jim Thome as their Marvin Miller Man of the Year. The award, named in honor of the MLBPA's first executive director, is given to the player in either league whose on-field performance and contributions to his community inspire others to higher levels of achievement.
Thome has served as honorary captain for CapCure for Prostate Cancer Awareness and he has worked closely with the United Way, United Cerebral Palsy and the national Conference for Community & Justice. On the field, Thome had more than 40 homers (42) for the fourth consecutive season and drove in 102 runs for the Phillies.
Ichiro was selected as the AL's Outstanding Player for 2004, establishing a new record with 262 hits and leading the majors with a .372 batting average. In four seasons, Ichiro has a .339 batting average and two batting titles.
Johan Santana, who was 20-6 and led AL starters with a 2.61 ERA and 265 strikeouts, was selected as the AL's Outstanding Pitcher. He held opponents to a .192 batting average and a .249 on-base average.
Jason Schmidt was named the NL's Outstanding Pitcher. He posted an 18-7 record, including three shutouts, and struck out 251 opponents while holding them to a .202 batting average and .272 on-base average. He was fifth in the NL with 225 innings pitched.
Jason Bay, a left fielder who batted .282 with 26 home runs and 82 RBIs in 411 at-bats in his first full season with Pittsburgh, was named the NL's Outstanding Rookie.
Bobby Crosby, who stepped in at shortstop for Oakland, played strong defensively while batting .239 with 22 homers, 34 doubles and 64 RBIs over 151 games to earn the AL Outstanding Rookie award.
Chris Carpenter, who missed part of 2002 and all of 2003 battling tendinitis in his right shoulder, was named NL Comeback Player of the Year. He helped lead the Cardinals to the NL Central crown with a 15-5 record and a 3.46 ERA. He held opponents to a .245 batting average.
Orlando Hernandez, who hadn't pitched in the Majors since the end of the 2002 season, was named AL Comeback Player of the Year. Returning to the Yankees in the middle of the season, he anchored an injury beset staff by winning his first eight games and finished with an 8-2 record and 3.30 ERA over 15 starts.
The Players Choice Awards winners were selected by secret ballot of all players, under the supervision of accounting firm KPMG. This year's balloting took place on Sept. 15-16.
Each Players Choice Award winner will designate a charity to receive a grant from the Players Trust, a not-for-profit foundation created and administered by the players, in an amount ranging from $20,000 to $50,000.
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