In what turned out to be the franchise's best season since joining the BBA in 2035, there was plenty of honors and recognition to handout at the Spuds' 2041 awards ceremony.In a breakout second season, Boise right fielder Félix Román exceeded all expectations by hitting .329/.408/.640 while capturing the Zimmer Award as the top defensive right fielder in the Johnson League, his second-consecutive such honor. Although snubbed as an All-Star, Roman finished the year 6th in the Johnson League with 49 home runs, 3rd in the JL with 152 RBI, and sixth in OBP with 1.047. All told, the 22-year-old ended up with the fourth-highest WAR total (8.0) in the JL, fifth-best in the entire Brewster. As a result, Román received the most votes for the 2041 Most Valuable Potato award, ending Dennis French's run of four consecutive awards. French narrowly edged-out Román in WAR with 8.1, and while the team captain earned his fourth-straight Johnson League Puckett Award as best offensive centerfielder and was named to his fifth All-Star team in as many years, it was Román's breakout and season-long consistency that impressed voters.
While the offense and defense were the Spuds strongest parts of the team, there were a handful of notable performances from Boise pitchers. Frank Metcalf rebounded from a dreadful rookie season to go 14-5 with a 4.64 ERA, Tom Warren stepped up as the team's stopper, leading Boise in both saves (16) and holds (21) to go along with a 2.62 ERA and 1.26 WHIP, and off-season free agent signing Jesús Arce delivered as expected, throwing over 90 IP out of the bullpen with a 2.53 EAR and 1.18 WHIP. However it was staff ace Pancho Germán who helped led the staff to their first division title and postseason appearance. Germán went 15-9 with an ERA of 4.78. For the second-year in a row, Germán made 36 starts and pitched a career-high 216.1 innings. Additionally, Germán won his second career Zimmer Diamond Glove Award for his stellar defense. For his veteran leadership and workhorse production, Germán was rewarded as Boise's Pitcher of the Year for 2041, his second-such honor in three seasons.
The last two recipients (Román in 2039 and Ricardo Ruíz in 2040) of this next award have both gone on to start tremendous major league careers with the Spuds. Ramón Miranda played through three levels of the Boise minor league system in 2040, eventually getting one game in at Triple-A Salt Lake City. After spending most of that season at Tulsa (A), Miranda spent the entire year at Double-A Weymouth and putting together a wonderful season at age 21. Named to the league's All-Star Game, the centerfielder hit a career-high 26 home runs and drove in 90 RBI. All together, Miranda slashed .294/.360/.524 to go along with above-average defense. For his fine efforts, Miranda was named the organization's Minor League Player of the Year for 2041.
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BOISE SPUDS TEAM ALMANAC
| YEAR | MOST VALUABLE POTATO | STATS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2035 | Ken Gerhart III | .259/.326/.522, 41 HR, 2.2 WAR | |
| 2036 | Yunosuke Terada | .274/.378/.646, 31 HR, 3.2 WAR | |
| 2037 | Dennis French | .293/.333/.477, 16 HR, 16 SB, 2.7 WAR | |
| 2038 | Dennis French | .369/.410/.598, 22 HR, 23 SB, 6.4 WAR | |
| 2039 | Dennis French | .352/.397/.596, 33 HR, 49 SB, 8.1 WAR | |
| 2040 | Dennis French | .369/.410/.648, 33 HR, 35 SB, 8.3 WAR | |
| 2041 | Felix Roman | .329/.408/.640, 49 HR, 152 RBI, 8.0 WAR |
| YEAR | PITCHER OF THE YEAR | STATS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2035 | Caleb Benavides | 7-9, 3.34 ERA, 28 SV, 2.0 WAR | |
| 2036 | Maxence Mace | 14-13, 3.95 ERA, 4.7 WAR | |
| 2037 | Maxim Makin | 11-8, 4.06 ERA, 2.2 WAR | |
| 2038 | Dave Walsh | 12-4, 2.67 ERA, 17 SV, 2.8 WAR | |
| 2039 | Pancho German | 17-8, 3.97 ERA, 4.8 WAR | |
| 2040 | Dave Walsh | 4-4, 2.95 ERA, 10 SV, 1.8 WAR | |
| 2041 | Pancho German | 15-9, 4.78 ERA, 4.0 WAR |
| YEAR | MiL PLAYER OF THE YEAR | STATS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2035 | Yunosuke Terada (AAA) | .306/.414/.663, 46 HR, 91 BB, 7.1 WAR | |
| 2036 | Pedro Diaz (AA) | .277/.381/.603, 43 HR, 113 RBI, 5.4 WAR | |
| 2037 | Matabei Kokawa (S-A) | .285/.401/.623, 19 HR, 3.1 WAR | |
| 2038 | Jim Des Jardien (AA) | .267/.386/.529, 40 HR, 104 BB, 4.8 WAR | |
| 2039 | Felix Roman (AA) | .300/.366/.646, 43 HR, 91 RBI, 7.3 WAR | |
| 2040 | Ricardo Ruiz (AAA) | .327/.364/.587, 27 HR, 97 RBI, 4.6 WAR | |
| 2041 | Ramon Miranda (AA) | .294/.360/.524, 26 HR, 90 RBI, 3.9 WAR |
| YEAR | LEAGUE AWARDS | |
|---|---|---|
| 2035 | - - - | |
| 2036 | - - - | |
| 2037 | Claudio Perez (Frick Zimmer Diamond Glove, C) | |
| 2038 | Pancho German (Frick Zimmer Diamond Glove, P), Yunosuke Terada (Frick Zimmer Diamond Glove, 1B), Yunosuke Terada (Frick Comeback Player), Yunosuke Terada (Frick Puckett Golden Bat, 1B), Joaquin Torres (Frick Zimmer Diamond Glove, SS), Dennis French (Frick Puckett Golden Bat, CF) | |
| 2039 | Dennis French (Frick Sawyer Silk MVP*), Dennis French (Frick Puckett Golden Bat, CF) | |
| 2040 | Dennis French (Johnson Sawyer Silk MVP), Dennis French (Johnson Puckett Golden Bat, CF), Felix Roman (Johnson Zimmer Diamond Glove, RF) | |
| 2040 | Dennis French (Johnson Puckett Golden Bat, CF), Felix Roman (Johnson Zimmer Diamond Glove, RF), Pancho German (Johnson Zimmer Diamond Glove, SP), Joe Lederer (Johnson GM of the Year) |