CBA Mid Season Awards

The two week hiatus from CBA league play to enjoy the President’s Cup marks a good point in time to reflect on the season we are witnessing. From Cincinnati’s dominance in the upper echelon of the CBA, to Portland’s struggle in the lowest tier, it has been a fascinating year. Although it may seem like the Royals have locked down the Premier League and maybe even the Tournament of Champions, the season is not yet over, there remains much baseball to be played. For this article, however, I imagine that the season has just ended and awards need to be distributed.

Bronze League:

Alejandro Pena MVP Award: RF Jason Trepanier (Wichita)

This race would be agonizingly close, but the award is most valuable player, not best. That’s where Trepanier separates himself from Salt Lake City left fielder Eric Hawkins. The Wichita Weasels play in a notoriously pitcher friendly park and their third lowest scoring offense in the Bronze League really suffers. Hawkins has the benefit of playing in an extremely hitter friendly park which produced Salt Lake City having the second most runs scored in the CBA. The two outfielders raw statistics are very similar, most might even give the edge to Hawkins, but a deeper dive into the two stars’ situations reveals Trepanier’s value in a tough environment.

Runner up: LF Eric Hawkins (Salt Lake City)

Seth Paddock Pitching Award: SP Chris Anderson (Carolina)

Last year the bridesmaid, this year the bride. 2027 BL Paddock Award runner-up Chris Anderson took another step in the positive direction the first half of this year by cutting the walks and home runs and increasing strikeouts. His ERA reflects the improvement moving from 2.44 to 2.33 so far. Having Anderson pitch every fifth day is the main reason that Carolina is in the promotion chase. The former first round pick is a no-brainer for the award at this point of the season.

Runner up: SP Bobby Simpson (Wichita)

Alejandro Pena Outstanding Rookie: RF Dave Higgins (Iowa)

Award voting for in this race should not be very close barring an injury or a massive change in performance. The Iowa Predators got themselves a steal in the second round with Dave Higgins. Placing third in batting average and second in on base percentage while batting in the three hole for the best team in the Bronze League makes Higgins the surefire rookie of the year. A relatively weak class of rookies in the Bronze League seals the deal.

Runner up: 2B Randy Colbert (Great Lakes)

Reliever of the Year: RP Rich Fujisawa (Philadelphia)

While choosing the best reliever from the best bullpen isn’t always a sound strategy for deciding this award, it applies in this scenario. Rich Fujisawa is having a breakout season for the Liberty, pitching to an ERA of 0.82 over 33 innings. Currently, he is handling stopper duties for the Liberty, who’s bullpen is sporting a CBA best 2.38 ERA. A questionably low BABIP of .164 may point to a possible second half regression, but as of right now, Fujisawa has been unhittable.

Runner up: RP D.J. Tabares (Philadelphia)

Silver League:

Jose Rodriguez MVP Award: LF Justin Clinton (Midwest)

47 players were picked in front of Justin Clinton in the 2025 draft. There were certainly some very good players in that group, (including teammate Jamie Malchow,) but the rookie season Clinton is putting together for the Midwest Plainsmen is making a lot of teams kick themselves for letting him slide down the board. He’s batting .343 with 26 homers and 61 RBI which makes his third place average his only deterrent to the SL triple crown. This won’t be a very tough choice for voters if Clinton can continue hitting the ball like he has been.

Runner up: CF Tom Bridges (Brooklyn)

Brad Limbach Pitching Award: SP Germao Paulus (Oklahoma)

Who said you can’t teach old dogs new tricks? The 36 year old veteran has pitched to 8-3 with an ERA of 2.52 this season. Paulus has certainly been a solid option his entire career, but 2028 he has really flipped the switch for the Mammoths. Paulus couldn’t have picked a better time to have the season of his life, as he has a player option this offseason and an 80,000 dollar bonus for winning this award.

Runner up: SP Matt Hambrick (Chicago)

Manny Gonzalez Outstanding Rookie: LF Justin Clinton (Midwest)

No need to fully delve into analysis for this selection, due to the fact that the author believes Justin Clinton is the most valuable player in the Silver League. Pitchers Albert Castro and Dan Emery are very solid options and would probably win most other years.

Runner up: SP Albert Castro (Oklahoma)

Reliever of the Year: RP Gary Borg (Oklahoma)

Borg, a young twenty four year old star reliever just keeps getting better. Scouts tell me that he still hasn’t reached his ceiling yet, which is harder to imagine statistically. The Mammoths have been relying on their arms this season in their pursuit of promotion and Borg is their bullpen anchor. By cutting his HR/9 in half and producing more soft contact, Borg has transformed himself into an elite stopper.

Runner up: RP Tony Carreon (Mexico City)

Premier League:

Adam Borne MVP: 1B Tye Bruce (Miami)

The “Thunder Down Under” has certainly been packing quite the Aussie punch in his sophomore season. Bruce has really grown as a contact and power hitter and it his statistical improvement is off the charts. He’s only 25 and our friends at OSA tell me he’s only going to get better. On pace for an 8 WAR season, Bruce batting third is the main reason the Warriors are comfortably eight games out of the relegation zone. While other Premier Leaguers have very strong cases for this award, Bruce gets the edge because of how he transforms South Beach’s lineup.

Runner up: LF Jason Isley (Cincinnati)

Premier League Keith Bush Pitching Award: SP Bobby Ortiz (LA)

When the Los Angeles Chilis signed a headcase starting pitcher out of the D.R. to a six year 37.5 million dollar contract, they expected an ace. That’s what they’ve gotten out of Ortiz so far. Pitching in Los Angeles’ noted hitters’ park can be difficult for some, but the lefty has been phenomenal in his first CBA season, pitching to a 2.85 ERA. He has excelled at home with a 2.76 ERA, most likely caused by his ability to induce groundballs. Even though the Chilis are headed to the Silver League, Ortiz has been an absolute stud.

Runner up: SP Chad Armbruster (Cincinnati)

Scott Golden Outstanding Rookie: 2B Matt Arender (MiamiI)

If the toughest player to get out is Tye Bruce, then the guy batting in front of him is a close second. This season, rookie Matt Arender has had the good fortune of batting one spot ahead of the Australian slugger. The former top pick has been one of the best pure hitters in the league with a .371 batting average. He doesn’t have a ton of pop, but a plus fielder at second base that can hit the way Arender has is an extremely valuable commodity in the CBA.

Runner up: SP Luis Mares (Florida)

Reliever of the Year: RP Chris Allen (Bay Area)

No surprise here. The superstar adds to his legacy by picking up his first PL Reliever of the Year award in the Pandas’ first PL season. Allen is actually in a bit of a slump right now, but he is still far and away the best stopper in the CBA. Simply stated, Allen shortens the game for the Pandas. When he’s on a roll, when the Pandas are winning after the 6th inning, chances are they’ll be adding to their win total. A step into the Premier League has proved not too difficult for Chris Allen.

Runner up: RP Jeremy Harbaugh (Dallas)