MVP voter listed Cardinals’ Arenado 8th on ballot

Sure, the MVP voting ended up pretty much as expected in both leagues, but a certain Platinum Glove-winning St. Louis Cardinal came up short in the eyes of one Denver sportswriter.

To no one’s surprise, St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt won the National League MVP award convincingly, capturing 22 of the 30 first-place votes and coming in second on the remaining eight ballots.  Congratulations to Goldy on a fantastic 2022 campaign and the hardware to exemplify his excellence.

While some Redbirds fans certainly are upset about third baseman Nolan Arenado coming in third behind San Diego’s own hot corner defender, Manny Machado, it’s far from the end of the world.  Arenado was a finalist, he received one first-place vote, and he edged out Freddie Freeman, who finished fourth in the voting, so the Cardinals third sacker had a very strong year.

What’s odd is that baseball writer Tracy Ringolsby, who covers the Colorado Rockies for insidetheseams.com, listed Arenado eighth on his ballot.  Eighth!  EIGHTH?!?!?  None of the other 29 voters had him lower than fourth.

Given the disparity between Ringolsby’s vote and everyone else’s, as well as his longstanding connection with the Rockies, it’s worth wondering if Ringolsby has an axe to grind with Arenado regarding his departure from the Mile High City.  After all, Arenado did express his displeasure with the Rockies’ inability to field a contending team, a disagreement that paved the way for his trade to the Cardinals.

Or maybe Ringolsby is just trying to be a rebel, an iconoclast, by way of his ballot.  After all, he listed Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Julio Urias third, the only MVP support the young hurler received.  Meanwhile, Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara of the Miami Marlins was not one of the 10 players he listed, oddly enough.

Further down the ballot, Ringolsby listed Colorado closer Daniel Bard ninth (Bard’s only vote) and Starling Marte 10th (Marte’s only vote).  Sure, Bard and Marte had good seasons, but were they anywhere close to Arenado’s level?  Not a chance.

Whatever the explanation, Ringolsby’s perception of value differed significantly from all the other voters.  Well, at least he put Goldschmidt first on his ballot, so he got something right.