An unfortunate acronym. But we really didn't have a choice. After all, many times we've been told, "don't call it a comeback." We've also been told, "don't turn around, 'cause you're gonna see my heart breaking." That's no good. So, MIP — Most Improved Player — it is. And for what its worth: to our knowledge no WSEM MIP has ever been given the similar designation from a city, county, or state. So, that's a good thing.
What does it take to get a WSEM MIP? Generally, unfortunately, it will take at least onebad sub-par under-achieving down season. It's tough to make great leaps without having ground to gain, after all. Sophomore seasons can sometimes work around this: a decent rookie season can launch into a much better campaign the second time around (knowing is some fraction of the battle, and there's no substitute for experience). Two of the four MIP winners have been second-year players; the other two were third-year veterans. So, there could be something to that "growing into the game" logic. Or, it could just as easily mean bouncing back from a bad sub-par down rough year. Small sample size.
Speaking of small sample sizes... here's a look at five suspects who are most likely in line to get this year's MIP.
What does it take to get a WSEM MIP? Generally, unfortunately, it will take at least one
Speaking of small sample sizes... here's a look at five suspects who are most likely in line to get this year's MIP.
NICKBRADEN |
AVG | SLG | OPS | AB/HR | PA/RBI | |
| 2016: | .200 | .463 | .814 | 13.57 | 7.31 | |
| 2015: | .139 | .250 | .445 | 36.00 | 15.40 | |
| # Change: | +.061 | +.213 | +.369 | -22.43 | -8.09 | |
| % Change: | +44% | +85% | +83% | -62% | -53% | |
A six-year veteran, Nick falls into that "had a bad season" category. He hit nearly 90 points below his career average in 2015, while also producing career lows in HR (2), RBI (5), and SLG%. Nick has made great strides in getting back to form this season. His production numbers are way up: slugging above his career number (.435) and in the top 15 in the league in that category, and his 7 HR on the season put him within striking distance of his career single-season high (10 HR) with 4 games remaining.
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MARKBRANNAN |
AVG | SLG | OPS | AB/HR | PA/RBI | |
| 2016: | .212 | .341 | .759 | 28.33 | 7.19 | |
| 2015: | .164 | .197 | .555 | 0 HR | 19.88 | |
| # Change: | +.048 | +.144 | +.204 | 3 HR | -12.69 | |
| % Change: | +29% | +73% | +37% | ∞% | -64% | |
Mark went from an MVP caliber, triple crown year in 2014 (.347 AVG, 13 HR, 50 RBI) to numbers less than half those in 2015 including 0 HR and only 8 RBI. That's a tough season. Now, 2016 may not be all the way back to the MVP level, but it is definitely a bounce back in the right direction. Mark's already doubled his RBI total and leapfrogged his total bases from last season with 10 games still remaining on the schedule. Mark-ed improvement across the board, for sure.
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RAYBROWN |
AVG | SLG | OPS | AB/HR | PA/RBI | |
| 2016: | .267 | .604 | 1.064 | 11.22 | 5.48 | |
| 2015: | .175 | .262 | .612 | 42.00 | 10.67 | |
| # Change: | +.092 | +.342 | +.452 | -30.78 | -5.19 | |
| % Change: | +53% | +131% | +74% | -73% | -49% | |
Brown may have fallen short of the early #RayForRoy hype last season, but he did turn in a respectable rookie campaign. Now, Ray looks to be capitalizing on the "sophomore surge" to carve out his place in the game. He currently sits in the top 10 for AVG, SLG%, OPS, HR (9), and RBI (25) with numbers that are at least 1.5 times greater than he turned in last season. Very impressive growth in the game. Oh, and he's pitching a little better, too. Ray's ERA has dropped over 1 full run (from 4.92 to 3.84), his WHIP ticked down 5 points (from 1.81 to 1.76), while his opponents batting average has fallen sharply (from .192 to .133). Put it all together and Mr. Brown looks like our leading suspect.
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DAVIDBUHR |
AVG | SLG | OPS | AB/HR | PA/RBI | |
| 2016: | .140 | .260 | .710 | 25.00 | 16.00 | |
| 2015: | .091 | .104 | .382 | 0 HR | 48.50 | |
| # Change: | +.049 | +.156 | +.328 | 2 HR | -32.50 | |
| % Change: | +54% | +150% | +86% | ∞% | -67% | |
Back at the game full-time this year, Buhr told us he'd have a better season. He's held up that claim so far. He has already matched his season high for hits from the past 3 seasons (7) with a third of the season left to play. He's also hit his first HR since June 5, 2013. Then added a second HR to make this his first multi-HR season since the inaugural 2011 campaign. Every one of David's production stats are all at least 1.5 times better than they were in 2015, and while it's not exactly a "production" number, Buhr has already matched his career high for BB in a season at 29.
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NATHANGENDRON |
AVG | SLG | OPS | AB/HR | PA/RBI | |
| 2016: | .278 | .722 | 1.140 | 7.18 | 4.26 | |
| 2015: | .245 | .510 | .941 | 16.33 | 5.00 | |
| # Change: | +.033 | +.212 | +.199 | -9.15 | -0.74 | |
| % Change: | +13% | +42% | +21% | -56% | -15% | |
The next two players have zero shot at winning the MIP. Both are far too dominant on the pitching side of the game to ever improve much further, comparatively speaking. They're already at the top of the game. But I want to include them here just to show the strides both have made on the offensive side of their game this season.
AUSTINBISCHOFF |
AVG | SLG | OPS | AB/HR | PA/RBI | |
| 2016: | .299 | .710 | 1.120 | 8.92 | 3.63 | |
| 2014: | .254 | .449 | .864 | 23.00 | 7.65 | |
| # Change: | +.045 | +.261 | +.256 | -14.08 | -4.02 | |
| % Change: | +18% | +58% | +30% | -61% | -53% | |
Austin didn't play in 2015, so his comparison here goes back two years. He's already set a new career high for HR in a season at 12 (previously 9) and TB with 76 (previously 62), plus he only needs 4 H and 3 RBI to match his career best for those stats in a single season, as well. He has a ways to go to catch his best AVG (.336 in 2014), but he's slugging nearly 100 points better than his previous best season (.613), so there's a nice cushion toward holding that number in what's been an impressive season for power.
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STEPHENFARKAS |
AVG | SLG | OPS | AB/HR | PA/RBI | |
| 2016: | .343 | .657 | 1.145 | 11.00 | 4.70 | |
| 2015: | .250 | .437 | .795 | 24.00 | 10.50 | |
| # Change: | +.093 | +.220 | +.350 | -13.00 | -5.80 | |
| % Change: | +37% | +50% | +44% | -54% | -55% | |
Farkas may actually be a better hitter today than a pitcher. Yeah, I said it. He leads the league in AVG, is top 5 in both HR and RBI, and sits at sixth in SLG%. Okay, so maybe not quite there yet. It is absolutely a career year for Stephen at the dish, though: batting nearly 100 points higher, slugging over 200 points higher, already setting a new season high HR mark (9), and on pace to more than double his career RBI total. Fark's hitting between 35% and 55% better than his 2015 season numbers in all production categories.
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