(RADIO.COM Sports) Cubs reliever Ryan Tepera logged a 3.92 ERA over 21 appearances out of the bullpen in 2020, which was solid for a 33-year-old who has spent much of the past decade shuffling between the big leagues and Triple-A.
Relievers tend not to draw much MVP consideration, which is why it was so astounding Thursday when the Baseball Writers’ Association of America shared the official results of National League MVP race, which was won decisively by Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman. That’s not the shocking part — Freeman was a heavy favorite and ultimately received 28 of 30 first-place votes. What raised eyebrows was Rick Hummel, a long-tenured beat writer for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, inexplicably casting a 10th-place vote for Tepera.
That’s right, Tepera, who began the season at the Cubs’ alternate training site in South Bend, miraculously tied for 18th in NL MVP voting, earning as many votes as Braves ace Max Fried, Cubs teammate Ian Happ and Brewers reliever Devin Williams, who was the NL Rookie of the Year. So what possessed Hummel, who has covered the Cardinals longer than Tepera has been alive, to include a random middle reliever on his MVP ballot? Not a thing. In fact, Hummel was as surprised as the rest of us when he learned he had voted for Tepera.
“I’m sure the Tepera family is delighted, but there’s no way I would have voted for him," Hummel said in his explanation to Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago. "It was an accident."
Hummel’s intention was to vote for Nationals shortstop Trea Turner, whose name was listed just below Tepera’s on the computer drop-down menu. Hummel must not have double-checked before submitting his final ballot, which led to Tepera, a former 19th-round pick who spent six years in the Blue Jays’ farm system before reaching the big leagues, to garner a 10th-place vote.
“Trea Turner should have one more point,” Hummel said, apologizing for the mix-up. “He’s a good player.”
Fortunately for Hummel, that vote wouldn’t have made much difference. Turner finished seventh in the balloting, well behind sixth-place recipient Marcell Ozuna, who had 167 points to Turner’s 83. Voting blunders like this will happen from time to time. Over the summer, ESPN reporter and host Maria Taylor caught flak for errantly leaving Lakers star Anthony Davis off her All-NBA ballot, a gaffe she was heavily criticized for.
Tepera, who doesn't maintain a particularly active social media presence (he hasn’t tweeted anything since August), has yet to weigh in on his much-discussed MVP candidacy.
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