Baltimore Orioles: Zach Britton wins 2016 Mariano Rivera Award
After having one of the most dominant seasons in baseball history, Zach Britton won the 2016 Mariano Rivera Award, which is given to the best reliever in the American League
Major League Baseball announced prior to Game 4 of the 2016 World Series that Baltimore Orioles closer Zach Britton is the recipient of the 2016 Mariano Rivera Award. The honor is awarded to the best reliever in the American League. On the National League side, Los Angeles Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen won the 2016 Trevor Hoffman Award. The honor is awarded to the best reliever in the National League.
Britton had an All-Star season for the Baltimore Orioles, posting a 0.54 ERA in 67 innings. The Orioles closer also led the American League with 47 saves and didn’t blow a single one.
Britton led the Baltimore Orioles to a postseason berth, going as far as the American League Wild Card game. After allowing an earned run on the final day of April, Britton went 44 appearances without giving up a run. He ultimately surrendered a run on August 24th.
Not only did Britton win the Mariano Rivera Award, he has a chance to win the American League Cy Young Award, which is awarded to the best pitcher of each league. No American League starter had a dominant season like Britton, which could make him the first player to win the Cy Young since Eric Gagne took home the award in 2003.
In the National League, Jansen also had a career season, posting a career-high in saves (47) and ERA (1.83). Jansen faced danger of losing his job last offseason when the Dodgers were close to acquiring closer Aroldis Chapman from the Chicago Cubs. However, the Dodgers backed out of the deal after Chapman was facing domestic violence allegations. The New York Yankees ended up acquiring Chapman, which solidified Jansen’s role as the Dodgers closer.
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Jansen made his first All-Star team in 2016 and pitched 6.1 innings in the NLCS. The Dodgers were eventually eliminated from the postseason by the Cubs.
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