Named after the great Maine and Waikiki outfielder, the Mitchell Award rewards the player who is the top hitter in the league.

This year's award goes to....

Albert Pujols, Philadelphia

Pujols became the first Philadelphia player to win the Mitchell Award with his stellar season. Pujols finished batting .321 (5th) with a 1.004 OPS (2nd), 43 homers (tied for 2nd) and 142 RBIs (2nd). He lead the league in slugging (.614), was second in extra base hits (90), third in runs created (145.4). Pujols also had the longest hitting streak of the year with 22 games.

Philadelphia knew right from the start that Pujols would be something special. He was the first overall selection in the 2002 draft. He did not disappoint. In his rookie season, Pujols batted .318 with a .920 OPS, 50 doubles, 29 homers and 108 RBIs. He narrowly missed (by one point) winning the Listach that year. Pujols continued to be a force, hitting at least .303 in every year except 2003 and 2008 and hitting at least 31 homers every year. He drove in at least 100 runs and scored at least 100 runs in every year, except 2003 again. For his career, Pujols is hitting .306/.365/.561 with a .926 OPS, 302 homers, and 997 RBIs in 8 seasons.

Second place Aubrey Huff of Hillsborough looked like the early season Mitchell frontrunner, but tailed off a bit in the second half. Nevertheless, Huff finished with a fine batting line (.325/.391/.605, 42 HR, 129 RBI). Carolina's Dustin Pedroia finished in third place and led the league in batting (.338). Marietta's Josh Hamilton received the final first place vote, finishing fourth. Hoboken's Mike Napoli may have been the biggest surprise of the season, leading the league with 52 homers and finishing 5th.

Points are scored as follows: 10 points for a first place vote, 7 for second, 5 for third, 3 for fourth, 2 for fifth and 1 for sixth.

The all-time winners of the Mitchell Award: