Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke Among Dodgers Nominated For 2015 MLB Awards

Every year Major League Baseball holds the MLB Player Awards, which is a set of awards fans can vote on. The categories include Best Major Leaguer, Best Everyday Player, Best Starting Pitcher and Best Rookie, among several others.

This season, three Los Angeles Dodgers players were nominated — starting pitchers Zack Greinke and Clayton Kershaw, and rookie center fielder Joc Pederson.

Greinke and Kershaw, who are both having Cy Young-caliber seasons, are nominated for two awards: Best Major Leaguer and Best Starting Pitcher.

Going into the season many knew how good of a pitcher Greinke was, but no one expected him to have the year he’s had. In 30 starts he is 18-3 with a Major League-leading 1.65 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, and 8.6 WAR.

The Dodgers have won 22 of his 30 starts, and Greinke is the only pitcher in baseball to go at least six innings in every single start.

While it may be unlikely he wins the Best Major Leaguer award, he stands a good chance of winning Best Starting Pitcher, with his primary competition likely being Kershaw and Chicago Cubs ace Jake Arrieta.

Kershaw, the reigning NL MVP and Cy Young winner, is having another outstanding season after a rocky start. If it weren’t for Greinke’s career year and Arrieta’s breakout season, he would be a lock to win the Cy Young for a fourth time in the last five years.

In 31 starts Kershaw is 15-7 with a 2.25 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 281 strikeouts. His strikeout total is the most in a single season since Randy Johnson had 290 in 2004. With two starts remaining in the regular season, Kershaw has an outside chance to become the first pitcher with 300 strikeouts since Johnson did it in 2002.

The final Dodger up for an award, Pederson, is nominated for Best Rookie. The 23 year old is batting .211/.346/.414 with 25 home runs and 52 RBIs in his rookie campaign.

Additionally, he was the runner up in the 2015 Home Run Derby and started for the NL All-star team. Despite his low average, Pederson’s ability to get on base (89 walks) and superb defensive ability in center field gives him a case to win this award.

Fans can vote for who they want to win these awards by clicking here. Voting closes on Friday, Nov. 13.