The Awards will be broken down into two articles with the Executive of the Year, Hitter / Pitcher / Reliever of the Year, Trade of the Year and Free Agent Claim of the Year announced today. Prospect, Activation and Farm System Awards will be announced later this week with Playoff MVPs announced at the completion of the year.
Executive of the Year: Greg Shelley, Alamo Short Stacks
For the third time in League History, Greg Shelley earned the nod for Roger Dorn Baseball League Executive of the Year as his club fought off the Lake Merced Goutfish for their RDBL-Record third Regular Season Title in 2024.
The Stacks were driven by a record-setting pitching staff that was expected to be led by Spencer Strider who was handed a RDBL-Record contract of $76 only to amass 1.0 points before going down with Tommy John. The slack was certainly picked up by Tarik Skubal and Logan Gilbert who finished 1st and 2nd in Pitching Scoring while the staff broke an eight-year old record with 3,268.0 Pitching Points while posting the second best ERA (3.06) in League History.
Honorable Mention: Ryan Atkinson (Goutfish), Gary Falzon (Falcons), Michael Tirabassi (Fish), Nick Holz (Aristocrats), Ross Horiuchi (Hammerheads)
Hitter of the Year: Aaron Judge, St. Joseph Jokers
For the second time in as many years, the RDBL Hitting Record Book saw a change with Aaron Judge smashing Ronald Acuna’s mark from 2023. Signed to a $62 deal by St. Joseph Jokers GM Rick Steen, Judge immediately proved his worth with a .333/.465/.736 line with 51 home runs and 30 doubles. His 594.0 points were an eye-popping 53.0 more than Acuna’s previous record.
This is the second time Judge has received the honor, capturing it in 2022 as a member of the Mission Viejo Maulers.
Honorable Mention: Bobby Witt, Jr. (Grapes), Shohei Ohtani (Fish), Juan Soto (Falcons), Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. (Stacks)
Pitcher of the Year: Tarik Skubal, Alamo Short Stacks
The race for RDBL Pitcher of the Year went down to the wire as teammates Tarik Skubal and Logan Gilbert battled for the honor with Skubal ultimately winning out. The left-hander, acquired from the Mission Viejo Maulers prior to the 2024 Season, posted a 2.58 ERA and 0.95 WHIP with a league-high 497.0 points while posting quality starts in 19 of 26 RDBL Regular Season chances.
Skubal joins Gerrit Cole, Sandy Alcantara, Walker Buehler, Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Madison Bumgarner, Jake Arrieta, Felix Hernandez and Clayton Kershaw as winners of the Pitcher of the Year Award.
Honorable Mention: Logan Gilbert (Stacks), Zack Wheeler (Falcons), Chris Sale (Heads), Seth Lugo (Falcons)
Reliever of the Year: Emmanuel Clase, Alamo Short Stacks
In one of the most dominant relief seasons in MLB History, Emmanuel Clase ran away with the Reliever of the Year Award as the Guardians closer edges closer to a 500 point season. Clase posted a 0.60 ERA and 0.65 WHIP, finishing 12th in overall pitching points. His 388.0 points were the second most in a RDBL Regular Season by a Reliever in League History, just behind Edwin Diaz’s 2018 campaign when he posted 389.0.
This is Clase's second Reliever of the Year Award, winning the honor in 2022 when he was also a member of the Stacks.
Honorable Mention: Raisel Iglesias (Stacks), Ryan Helsley (Grapes), Robert Suarez (Aristocrats), Kirby Yates (Goutfish)
Trade of the Year: Tarik Skubal to Stacks
While the long-term potential remains with Max Clark and Jordan Westburg for Mission Viejo Maulers GM Chris Ferraro, the club would certainly take back the deal that sent left-hander Tarik Skubal to the Alamo Short Stacks entering the 2024 Season. Skubal’s $1 contract which is controlled through 2025 proved to be one of the league’s most elite values as he posted 497.0 RDBL Regular Season points, pacing all pitchers while earning the 2024 RDBL Pitcher of the Year Award with an American League Cy Young Award likely to follow.
Honorable Mention: Rooker to Hammerheads, Soto to Falcons, Ober to Clovers
Free Agent Claim of the Year: Jurickson Profar, Honolulu Hammerheads
Profar went undrafted in 2024 before the Honolulu Hammerheads brought back the outfielder who had served as a Keeper for them in 2023. Profar did more than reward GM Ross Horiuchi as he produced a .291/.386/.478 line over 464 RDBL Regular Season at-bats, posting 376.5 points while ranking 13th among all hitters over that span.
Honorable Mention: Ronel Blanco (Grapes), Erick Feede (Maulers), Jake Irvin (Jokers), Luis Garcia (Fish)
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