NEW YORKand SECAUCUS, N.J., Dec. 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The winners of the 2011 Greatness in Baseball Yearly (GIBBY) Awards were unveiled tonight on MLB Network and MLB.com during a show hosted by MLB Network's Greg Amsinger and Mitch Williams. David Freese of the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals was the only multiple award winner, as he earned Postseason MVP and top Postseason Moment for his dramatic game-tying, ninth-inning triple in Game 6 of the 2011 World Series.
In addition to the Cardinals, four other Clubs claimed multiple GIBBY winners, including the Arizona Diamondbacks (Kirk Gibson, Manager of the Year; Ian Kennedy, Breakout Player of the Year); Detroit Tigers (Justin Verlander, Starting Pitcher of the Year; Jose Valverde, Closer of the Year); New York Yankees (David Robertson, Setup Man of the Year; Robinson Cano, Wow Factor of the Year; Derek Jeter, Performance of the Year); and Tampa Bay Rays (Dan Johnson, Moment of the Year; Evan Longoria, Walk-Off of the Year).
This year's winners of the GIBBY Awards - the ultimate trophies honoring the best players and must-see moments from the 2011 Major League Baseball season - were determined through a comprehensive six-week voting process (Oct. 29-Dec. 4) that included national and local media members, Major League Club front office personnel, former Major League players and online fan balloting at MLB.com. Over the past four seasons, fans have cast more than 40 million online votes for the 19 categories, none of which were restricted to individual League affiliation. A complete list of 2011 winners and highlights can be found at MLB.com/GIBBYs.
QUOTES FROM THE 2011 GIBBY AWARDS SHOW
GIBSON - "I'd like to thank all the fans and everybody who voted for me for Manager of the Year. It's an exceptional honor for me, being a rookie manager. ... It's exemplary of why we all get up and play the game hard with dedication, and do it the right way every day."
KENNEDY - "I'd like to thank everyone who voted for me for this award. It's an honor. Every one of those guys is deserving and had great years. I'd like to thank my teammates for putting me in this position to win this award."
JOHN MOZELIAK (Executive of the Year) - "I'd like to thank everyone who voted for me on this award. It's a great honor, and I take a lot of pride in being recognized in this. ... There are so many great people who work in our front office who deserve credit for this award. I'm honored and humbled by this. I also want to recognize our ownership that gives us so much support throughout the year."
BEN REVERE (Play of the Year) - "I just want to say thank you to the fans who voted for me, to the Minnesota Twins faithful, and to MLB.com and MLB Network for allowing me to accept this honor."
ROBERTSON - "This is a huge honor. This is one of those things I didn't expect to win."
SOURCE MLB.com
