The Career Triple Crown

The dirt on Miguel Cabrera

Should a Triple Crown guarantee an MVP Award?

It seems that Miguel Cabrera's Triple Crown, the majors' first since 1967, might be enough to carry him past Mike Trout in the MVP balloting. But should it?

Miguel Cabrera becomes 16th winner of baseball's Triple Crown

On Wednesday, Miguel Cabrera became the 16th major-league hitter to complete a Triple Crown and the first since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. Cabrera ended the 2012 campaign with a .330 batting average, 44 home runs and 139 RBI, leading the AL in all three categories. He lead the league in OPS, too, for what it's worth.

Cabrera joins an exclusive club in baseball that includes 11 Hall of Famers (asterisk denotes HoF standing):

• 1967: Carl Yastrzemski*
• 1966: Frank Robinson*
• 1956: Mickey Mantle*
• 1947: Ted Williams*
• 1942: Ted Williams
• 1937: Joe Medwick*
• 1934: Lou Gehrig*
• 1933: Jimmie Foxx*
• 1933: Chuck Klein*
• 1925: Rogers Hornsby*
• 1922: Rogers Hornsby
• 1909: Ty Cobb*
• 1901: Nap Lajoie*
• 1887: Tip O'Neill
• 1878: Paul Hines

Carl Yastrzemski, Bud Selig congratulate Miguel Cabrera

After Miguel Cabrera nailed down baseball's first Triple Crown since Carl Yastrzemski accomplished the feat as a member of the Boston Red Sox in 1967, Yaz issued his congratulations to the Detroit slugger.

Yastrzemski's Triple Crown year came when he was 27 years old; he had a .326 batting average with 44 home runs and 121 RBI for the first-place Red Sox. In his statement, Yastrzemski acknowledged Cabrera's contribution to Detroit's run at the AL Central title:

"I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to Miguel Cabrera on winning the Triple Crown. I am glad that he accomplished this while leading his team to the American League Central title. I was fortunate enough to win this award in 1967 as part of the Red Sox Impossible Dream Team."

The Red Sox fell to the Cardinals, four games to three, in the 1967 World Series. Cabrera and the Tigers will kick off their trek to the World Series against the Oakland Athletics on Saturday, Oct. 6.

Yaz wasn't the only one congratulating Cabrera Wednesday night -- Commissioner Bud Selig also lauded Cabrera's "remarkable achievement" and trumpeted that the slugger has made his mark in history.

"Miguel has long been one of the most accomplished hitters in the game, and this recognition is one that he will be able to cherish for the rest of his career in baseball and beyond. As the Tigers prepare for the Postseason, we have a global stage to witness Miguel's talent, which will go down as one of the hallmarks of Major League Baseball's extraordinary 2012 regular season."

Miguel Cabrera wins first Triple Crown since 1967

For the first time since Carl Yastrzemski accomplished the feat for the Boston Red Sox in 1967, baseball has a Triple Crown winner. The Detroit Tigers' Miguel Cabrera finished the 2012 season leading the American League with a .330 batting average, 44 home runs and 139 RBI.

He was pulled in the bottom of the fourth inning of the Tigers' game against the Kansas City Royals after going 0-for-2 Wednesday night, setting his season line in stone.

The only possible threats to Cabrera entering the evening were Mike Trout and Curtis Granderson, who had outside shots at challenging him for batting average and home runs, respectively. Trout finished the night 2-for-3, giving him a batting average of .326.

Granderson put on an impressive show in the New York Yankees' season finale against the Boston Red Sox, clobbering a pair of home runs to give him a total of 43 for the season. But he was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the seventh inning, leaving him one short of Cabrera.

Trout remains Cabrera's stiffest competition for the American League MVP Award.

In Defense Of The Triple Crown

Miguel Cabrera might win the Triple Crown, which means he'll lead the league in a couple of statistics the discerning baseball fan doesn't care about. Should we care, though?

Miguel Cabrera, The Triple Crown, And Handicapping The AL MVP Race