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The fourth game of this Padres/Braves series was very important in me avoiding having to look for an MVP in a losing series. Thankfully, Yangervis Solarte kept that from happening with his extra-inning hit to put the Padres ahead and split the series in Atlanta. Last week, Yonder Alonso held 56% of the vote to be a repeat winner of the series MVP honors.
Once again, I made some changes to my point system. This week, it was in regards to the hits section in the pitching department. I raised the number from -2 to -1 for the starters. In doing this, it lifts the point totals for starters due to how long they can be in the game while making it more important for relievers not to give up hits due to their being responsible for holding a lead and keeping damage from increasing.
| Batters | Starters | Relievers |
| Single- 2 points per | Win- 10 points | Win- 5 points |
| Double- 4 points per | Loss- Minus 5 points | Loss- Minus 3 points |
| Triple- 6 points per | IP- 3 points per | IP-3 points per |
| Home Run- 8 points per | K- 2 points per | K- 2 points per |
| RBI- 2 points per | Hits- Minus 1 points per | Hits- Minus 1 points per |
| Run- 1 point per | BB- Minus 2 points per | BB- Minus 2 points per |
| Walk- 1 point per | ER- Minus 2 points per | ER- Minus 2 points per |
| SB- 1 point per | QS- 3 points | Hold/Save- 3 points |
| CS- Minus 1 point per | ||
| K- Minus 2 points per | ||
| GIDP- Minus 3 points per | ||
| Error- Minus 1 point per |
| Batters | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4 | Total | Starters | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4 | Total | |
| Alonso | 8 | 4 | -2 | -2 | 8 | Kennedy | 13 | X | X | X | 13 | |
| Amarista | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | Shields | X | 11 | X | X | 11 | |
| Barmes | 6 | 3 | X | X | 9 | Ross | X | X | 9 | X | 9 | |
| Gyorko | -2 | X | X | X | -2 | Cashner | X | X | X | 3 | 3 | |
| Hedges | 0 | X | -2 | X | -2 | |||||||
| Kemp | 5 | -3 | X | -1 | 1 | Relievers | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4 | Total | |
| Middlebrooks | -2 | X | 0 | -5 | -7 | Benoit | 3 | -6 | X | 5 | 2 | |
| Myers | X | X | X | -2 | -2 | Garces | -6 | X | 2 | 1 | -3 | |
| Norris | 0 | 7 | X | 4 | 11 | Kelley | X | X | -9 | X | -9 | |
| Solarte | 0 | 2 | -2 | 9 | 9 | Kimbrel | 8 | X | X | 10 | 18 | |
| Spangenberg | 2 | 5 | 12 | 5 | 24 | Maurer | 10 | -1 | X | 3 | 12 | |
| J. Upton | 0 | 4 | -3 | 2 | 3 | Mazzoni | X | X | X | X | 0 | |
| M. Upton Jr. | 1 | 2 | -2 | 1 | 2 | Quackenbush | 4 | X | -1 | X | 3 | |
| Venable | 6 | 20 | 0 | -2 | 24 | Thayer | 3 | 2 | X | 4 | 9 | |
| Kennedy | -2 | X | X | X | -2 | Vincent | X | X | X | X | 0 | |
| Shields | X | 1 | X | X | 1 | |||||||
| Ross | X | X | 1 | X | 1 | |||||||
| Cashner | X | X | X | -4 | -4 |
After this tough series that forced the Padres to play into the 11th inning twice to capture the 2 wins needed to split the series, it's going to be tough for Yonder Alonso to get a third straight series MVP honor. Alonso contributed 2 doubles and 2 RBI over the series. Other Padres came up big when they were needed and some stayed consistent over the 4 game stretch.
Does Will Venable deserve MVP honors for his performance in the first 2 games? Though it was in a losing effort, Venable's double, home run, and 2 RBI in Game 2 kept the Padres leading until James Shields and the bullpen allowed Atlanta back into the game and ultimately into the lead.
What about Cory Spangenberg? Over the 4 game series, Spangenberg went 7 for 16 with 4 RBI. Does his consistency over the series garner your vote for series MVP?
Of course, Yangervis Solarte has to be on the list of candidates for his performance in the final game of the series. After entering the game as a pinch hitter, he singled to keep the Padres rally going that led to them tying it all up in the 8th inning. Then, with the bases loaded in the 11th inning, Solarte singled to right to score the winning runs and give San Diego the win.
Unfortunately in this series, it was hard to determine what pitcher(s) should garner MVP honors. The only pitchers who were truly valuable in the series were those in the bullpen like Craig Kimbrel, Dale Thayer, and Brandon Maurer. Between the three of them over the series, they pitched for 7 and 2/3 innings while allowing only 3 hits, 3 walks, and collecting 6 strikeouts. Thayer and Maurer got the 2 wins for the Padres and Kimbrel recorded the save in each of the two victories.
The choice is yours. Vote for who you feel should be this series' MVP.