Vladdy, Berrios headline Toronto BBWAA award winners

Some of the most popular Blue Jays — and an old friend — were among the annual award winners recently named by the Toronto chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

Already a topic of conversation this offseason thanks to his contract situation and the hardware he's won, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. headlined the group by earning the Neil MacCarl Award as player of the year. Jose Berrios was named pitcher of the year, while right-hander Bowden Francis and Spencer Horwitz was recognized the most improved player and rookie of the year, respectively.

Rounding out the group of 2024 award winners is catcher Danny Jansen, who was given the John Cerutti Award for displaying goodwill, cooperation, and character. In July, Jansen was traded to the Boston Red Sox after seven seasons and 471 games with Toronto. The Blue Jays drafted Jansen in the 16th round of the 2013 MLB Draft.

It's the third time Guerrero won the player of the year, a feat he achieved in 2021 and 2022. The infielder finished sixth in American League MVP voting, thanks to his .323 average, 199 hits, 30 home runs, and .940 OPS. The All-Star got off to a rough start in 2024,
but took off as the weather warmed. Guerrero hit .376 and posted a 1.127 OPS after the All-Star Break. In the offseason, Guerrero won a Silver Slugger Award and was named a candidate for the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame's Tip O'Neill Award, which goes to the game's best player from Canada.

Berrios won 16 games and posted a 3.60 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP in 192.1 innings in 2024. The righty struck out 153 and made 21 quality starts and was the March/April AL Pitcher of the Month.

Few have had a season like Francis, who went from an 8.59 ERA in April to the minors, then to the brink of making history twice. Francis got an opportunity to join the rotation when Yusei Kikuchi was traded to Houston in July, and never looked back. Francis was named Pitcher of the Month in August, thanks to his 1.05 ERA and 0.41 WHIP (the lowest for a single month in history) for the month. He also had a stretch where he allowed just six hits in 29 innings, a stretch that included two starts where Francis took a no-hitter into the ninth inning. Francis would lose both bids, but made a name for himself. His post-All-Star Break 0.60 WHIP is the lowest in MLB history.

Horwitz made his season debut in June and was named to the MLB All-Rookie Second Team. The infielder led rookies with a .357 on-base percentage, while hitting .265 and posting a .790 OPS. Horwitz hit 12 home runs, which included a pair of two-HR games.