Pete Rose got the award in 1975, largely for being World Series MVP- and he wasn’t nearly as impressive as Bumgarner.
As I said, there’s no clear standard for choosing the winner of this particular award. Rick is right to note that Bob Gibson was brilliant in World Series play and never got an SI award for it.
But Johnny Podres did… so who knows?
That’s why it’s “Sportsman” of the Year and not “Athlete” of the Year.
Then again, Time named Peter Ueberroth its 1984 Person of the Year pretty much for organizing the 1984 Summer Olympics. (I don’t see Selig even in contention for that one, though - my guess is Mitch McConnell as the figurehead for the GOP “resurgence” in the 2014 elections, although Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai (“Little Miss Taliban Target”) has a chance as well.)
(I am a little surprised it hasn’t been changed to “Sportsperson” or “Sports Personality”, the way Time’s “Man of the Year” is now always “Person of the Year”.)
I didn’t include anybody from the Spurs because Robinson and Duncan won in 2003.
I also forgot about Jeter, but as has been pointed out, he won in 2009. You have to do something really exceptional (i.e. the “Tiger Slam”) to get it twice.
You’re right- since Robinson and Duncan already won, Poppovich probably isn’t a contender.
Bob Gibson won seven consecutive WS starts, his first seven appearances, all complete games. Lew Burdette pitched three complete game wins in one series, allowing two runs.
Any chance of something related to the World Cup? The USA team did get out of the group of death and generated interest with sold out viewing parties
I mentioned Tim Howard in Post #19. It’s not super likely they’d pick him, but there are certainly worse choices.
My orange blood has clouded my objectivity. Thanks for the Gibson info, you and Rick.
Can we agree that he’s among the greatest WS pitchers in modern history?
According to the latest issue of Sports Illustrated, I’ve been nominated for Sportsman of the Year!
If I win, I’ll feel like every citizen of about two dozen European Countries did when the EU won the Nobel Peace Prize!
First I was Time Man of the Year, now (possibly) SI Sportsman of the Year. I’ve lived a full life.
Throwing it out there: Any Chance it could be Stuart Scott?
He’s not an athlete or a sportsman, but he’s famous for what he does and he does have Cancer.
My vote would be Devon Still or, frankly, the GM of the Bengals (I don’t even know who that is!) for creating the “money from every jersey sold goes to The Childrens Hospital” campaign. You know what? Him. Give it to Him. Whoever that is.
With the lack of strong adult male candidates, how about Mo’ne Davis, the first girl to get a win and a shutout in the Little League World Series? She’s arguably more influential than any other sports[person] this year.
I’m happy for Royals fans but that’s got to be the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard of in my life. They showed up and cheered for a team that won the American League pennant. That happens in one city or another every year.
I’d have to vote for Thomas Mueller, the best player at the biggest sports tournament in the world, and it was the second time he’d played brilliantly in a World Cup.
Ugh, it might be the Jackie Robinson little league team. I’m happy for the kids , but living in Chicago, they’ve over stayed their 15 minutes.
Does the sportsman of the year have to be an American? In the world of FIFA, there are certainly some better choices, too.
It doesn’t have to be, but they want to sell magazines and advertising to a mainly USA audience
So, presumably, the Sportsman of the Year should be the one who has spurred the most ad revenue for the USA entertainment industry. Tim Howard would certainly work for that.
That’s got to be it.
How can a 12-year-old be the Sportsman of the Year in a nation that pays thousands of adults over a million dollars each to perform athletically? Is the criteria list headed by being cute? Aw-w-w-w!
Refer to the above comment about wanting to sell magazines.
When are “somethings of the year” every really something?
The “unwritten rule” is, it is someone (or a team) that either (a) is in one of the four major professional team sports (neither Wayne Gretzky (1982) nor Sammy Sosa (1998) are Americans), (b) a professional golfer or tennis player, or (c) an American athlete in a different sport (e.g. Lance Armstrong). The last exception to this rule I remember was speed skater Johann Olav Koss in 1994, and even then, he shared it with USA speed skater Bonnie Blair.
There have been three exceptions, if you exclude “Athletes Who Care”; runner Roger Bannister (the first winner, in 1954), boxer Ingemar Johannson (1959), and Formula 1 driver Jackie Stewart (1973).
There is one possibility for this year; if they are considering goalie Tim Howard, they may also be considering Team Mexico goalie Guillermo Ochoa to share it.
There have been other girls in the LLWS - in fact, at least one has been in the championship game - but none of them were seriously considered. Maybe if her team would have won the championship, she would have a shot. “Sports Illustrated Kids” magazine (yes, it’s a thing) has its own Sportskid of the Year award, and she has to be the frontrunner for that.