The results of player voting for the Summer 2021 Maui Adult Baseball League regular season awards are given below. A total of 58 players representing all 8 teams cast votes to determine the winners, with candidates selected based on statistical merits and manager nominations.
MVP: Mike Abercrombie (West Maui Brewers)
Cy Young: Joseph McFarlin (La Perouse Pirates)
Rookie of the Year: Daniel Hyatt (West Maui Brewers)
Manager of the Year: Kacey & Ryan Swindle (Kihei Centipedes)
Batting Champion: Mitchell Crim (Makena Royals)
Gold Glove: Edison Sakata (Central Rays)
Most Improved: Michael Kiesler (Kihei Centipedes)
Kenneth Talbot Award: Matthew Reidy (Kihei Centipedes)
The Brewers’ Mike Abercrombie beat out Ryan Swindle of the Centipedes and Jacob Tiu of the Royals to win Most Valuable Player honors after hitting .448 with 26 hits, 18 runs scored, and 15 RBIs over 14 games. Abercrombie’s 38 total bases were easily tops in the league this season, and the Brewers’ center fielder finished second in the league in runs, RBIs, and slugging percentage (.655) while helping his squad to their first trip to the 2nd Round of the MABL Playoffs since 2019.
Joseph McFarlin won his 4th MABL Cy Young award in the part 5 seasons after going 3-0 with a 1.17 ERA and 34 strikeouts over 30.2 innings. The Pirates’ ace lead the league in ERA, opponents average (.188), and WHIP (1.04) by significant margins, and edged out the Rays’ Micah Richardson to win the award.
P/INF Daniel Hyatt was the overwhelming consensus selection as the MABL Rookie of the Year after batting .367 with 13 runs scored, 10 RBIs, and 1 HR and going 3-1 with a 2.35 ERA and 36 strikeouts over 23.0 innings in the regular season. Hyatt’s 29 total bases were second in the league behind teammate Abercrombie, and his .169 opponents average and 14.09 K/9 would have led the league if qualifying.
After doubling their win total from a season ago, the Centipedes’ co-managers Kacey and Ryan Swindle won their second consecutive Manager of the Year award. After starting the season with wins in 7 of their first 9 games, the Centipedes finished with their highest total (8) since their Spring 2018 campaign which ended with a league Championship title.
After going 3 for 4 in the final game of the regular season, Royals CF Mitchell Crim hit .488 with 20 hits in 41 at bats to win the MABL batting title. As the spark plug atop the Royals’ lineup, Crim’s .588 on-base percentage was tops in the league as well. In his 14th season in the league, Crim moved into 10th place in the all-time hits list this season with 258 career hits.
The Rays’ Edison Sakata won his second consecutive MABL Gold Glove award this season. The talented shortstop edged out the Pirates’ backstop John Schnettgoecke, while also breaking the all-time MABL consecutive game hitting streak record at the plate. Sakata’s glove and bat have helped the Rays return to the Championship Series for the first time since the Summer 2017 season.
Michael Kiesler of the Kihei Centipedes was awarded the MABL’s Most Improved Player of the season after hitting .447 with 12 runs scored and 10 RBIs over 14 games. Kiesler’s Summer 2021 regular season batting average was 131-point improvement over his previous career high (.316 during the Spring 2021 season) and is nearly double his career average across 48 games entering the season. The Centipedes outfielder edged out a pair of Royals, Jacob Tiu and Tim Connell, to win the award.
The Summer 2021 Kenneth Talbot Award winner is Matthew Reidy of the Centipedes. Known to many throughout the league as “Chip Swinger”, Reidy has become a major part of the behind-the-scenes operation of the Maui Adult Baseball League. Along with his wife Jeana, Reidy has organized two All-Star Food Drives benefiting the Maui Food Bank over the past year which have raised over 600 lbs of food for individuals in need in Maui County. His immensely popular Swinger Series has provided special looks at some of the unique individuals who make up the league, and his colorful commentary on live streams of MABL postseason games is a tremendous example of a member of the league stepping up to enrich the MABL experience. Congrats and thank you, Chip!
In addition to the accolades described above, the Rays’ Garrett Yamada became 23rd member of the MABL 200-career games club (and had himself a season while doing it – Yamada’s .452 batting average was second to only Mitchell Crim).
And in his second season in the league, the Warriors’ Mike Gilligan set a new single-season record with 93 strikeouts over 70.0 innings pitched. The southpaw smashed the previous mark of 82, set by Joe Stover during the Summer 2014 season.