Renaming the MVP

It's been an eventful few days in Major League Baseball!  We haven't seen nearly as much free agent activity as we should (which I think we all expected), but there's still been a lot going on.  First the Indians announced their pending name change, then MLB made the long-overdue decision to recognize the Negro Leagues as "major leagues" and incorporate those stats into the Major League record books.

The decision to include Negro League stats alongside those of the players from the American and National Leagues from 1920-48 was a long time coming, and it's yet another positive change we've seen from MLB this year.  It's also a fitting conclusion to a year in which the name of Kenesaw Mountain Landis, baseball's first commissioner who was just as responsible as anybody (probably more so) of keeping the Major League segregated during that time, was removed from the MVP award.

They're still in the process of determining whose name will be placed on the MVP awards to replace Landis.  While there's a chance they'll simply call it the "MVP" award without putting somebody's name on it, that seems unlikely.  Most of the awards presented by the BBWAA honor a legendary player, so it stands to reason that's the route they'll take with the MVP.  But who do you honor?  That's the real question.

Let's start with the players who it probably won't be.  The most obvious players to have awards named after them already do, so that rules out most of the first names you'd think of.  The Babe Ruth Award isn't a BBWAA award, but it goes to the postseason MVP (it's kinda like baseball's Conn Smythe Trophy for the overall postseason MVP).  Likewise, there's already a Hank Aaron Award (top hitter in each league), Roberto Clemente Award (sportsmanship and community involvement) and Lou Gehrig Award (character and integrity).

Obviously, there's the Cy Young Award, too, while the Relief Pitchers of the Year receive the Mariano Rivera (AL) or Trevor Hoffman Award (NL).  And could the DH of the Year be named for anybody other than Edgar Martinez?  Both the All-Star Game (Ted Williams) and World Series (Willie Mays) MVP awards have legendary names attached to them, too.  And the Rookies of the Year have received the Jackie Robinson Award since 1987 (a full 10 years before his number was retired throughout baseball).

As you can see, there are already some many baseball legends who are forever immortalized by having an award named after them.  Fortunately, there are plenty of others who are just as deserving to be honored.  And any number of Hall of Famers would be a great choice.

Every time I thought about, though, one name kept coming back to me.  And that's Frank Robinson.  Frank Robinson was just as much of a trail blazer as Jackie, and I can't think of anyone more appropriate.  So, when it comes time to choose whose name to go on the MVP award moving forward, I hope the BBWAA selects Frank Robinson.

There are more reasons why it should be Frank Robinson then reasons why it shouldn't.  For starters, he's the only player in history to be named MVP in both leagues.  He was the NL MVP with the Reds in 1961, then took the AL honors in 1966 after winning the Triple Crown for the Orioles (in his first season with Baltimore).  Robinson was also the World Series MVP that season.  That alone would be a convincing argument, but there's so much more.

Frank Robinson was also the first black manager in the Majors.  He was named Cleveland's player-manager in 1974, then managed the Giants from 1981-84 and was AL Manager of the Year with the Orioles in 1989.  In 2002, MLB asked him to take over as manager of the Expos, and he guided them through their final three seasons in Montreal, as well as their first two in D.C.  It was with the Nationals that he earned his 1,000th managerial win in 2006, his final season as a manager.

Between his managerial stints, Robinson worked for MLB in various executive roles, including Honorary President of the American League.  He also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005.

If all that's not enough, his 586 career home runs were fourth-most in MLB history at the time of his retirement (he's currently 10th).  Robinson was a 14-time All-Star and was a finalist for the MLB All-Century Team.  He was a first-ballot Hall of Famer in 1982, getting 89.2 percent of the vote, and has had his number retired by three different teams (Orioles, Reds, Indians).

Simply put, Frank Robinson is one of the most influential people in baseball history.  He was far more than a Hall of Fame player.  He was a pioneer.  The fact that the only man to win MVP awards in both leagues was also the first black manager is a cool little factoid, but his impact goes far beyond that.  I can think of no better way to honor his legacy than renaming the MVP award after Frank Robinson.

I can't think of a more polar opposite person than Kenesaw Mountain Landis, either.  Landis ruled baseball with an iron fist for 25 years.  But it's also not a coincidence that Jackie Robinson didn't break the color barrier until three years after Landis died.  As time went on, his role in keeping baseball segregated became more and more inexcusable, and his name being on the MVP trophy became more and more controversial.

Baseball has come a long way since the days of Judge Landis.  Frank Robinson is a symbol of all that progress.  Which is one of the many reasons why he's the perfect person to replace Landis on the MVP award.  Or, should I say, the Frank Robinson Most Valuable Player Award?