![Buster Posey](https://web.archive.org/web/20101117044402im_/http://www.blogcdn.com/mlb.fanhouse.com/media/2010/11/buster-posey-307aj111510.jpg)
Posey received 20 of the 32 first-place votes, with Heyward earning nine. Cardinals pitcher Jaime Garcia finished third in the voting and got one first-place vote, while Marlins first baseman Gaby Sanchez got two and finished fourth. As with every BBWAA award, votes were cast at the end of the regular season, so Posey's performance in the Division Series, NLCS and World Series was not considered, nor was Heyward's in the NLDS against Posey's Giants.
"I'm extremely excited and happy and humbled to have won the honor," Posey said during a conference call with the media Monday afternoon.
"With all the (rookie) talent that was in the National League this year, I think that makes it more special."
Voters picked three players on their ballot, with each first-place vote receiving five points, each second-place vote receiving three points and each third-place vote receiving one point. Posey finished with 129 points, while Heyward had 107. Garcia was a distant third with 24 points, while Sanchez was in fourth with 18. Chicago's Starlin Castro, Pittsburgh's Neil Walker and Jose Tabata, New York's Ike Davis and Atlanta's Jonny Venters also received votes.
At the heart of the debate was how much value to assign to Posey's impact on the Giants' run to the playoffs once he was called up in late May, and how to weigh that against Heyward's influence from Opening Day onward on a team that also qualified for the postseason as the NL wild card.
Posey, 23, joined the Giants on May 29 and hit .305 with 18 homers and 67 RBI. He played in 108 games for San Francisco during the regular season, including 76 as a catcher handling the Giants' outstanding pitching staff. Most of those games behind the dish came after the Giants dealt Bengie Molina to the Rangers on July 1.
San Francisco was 25-22 before Posey arrived. With his bat in the lineup, it took off, going 67-48 on the way to the NL West title and, ultimately, a World Series championship.
Heyward, on the other hand, broke camp with the Braves and made his presence felt immediately, homering on Opening Day.
"I remember seeing him hit that home run on Opening Day," Posey said. "As a baseball fan, it was a really cool moment."
Heyward played in 142 games -- missing some time in July due to a wrist injury -- and posted a .277 average with 18 homers and 72 RBI.
But Heyward, who turned 21 in August, also posted some impressive underlying numbers that surely swayed the voters who checked his name first on their ballots. His 91 walks and .393 on-base percentage were both the fourth-best marks in the National League, and they were certainly critical to Atlanta's first postseason berth since 2005.
Ultimately, the voters valued Posey's impact on the Giants' playoff push over Heyward's contributions over a full season.
He is the sixth NL catcher in the history of the award to win it, joining Johnny Bench, Earl Williams, Benito Santiago, Mike Piazza and Geovany Soto.
"It's surreal to have won," he said.
"It gives me chills ... to have been one of the few Giants to have won the award."
Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Way to go Buster!! You helped the Giants win the World Series! Good Call!Lookin forward to many great years behind the plate for the Giants
Great choice! Buster will be a big time star for years and years- and he is a Giant!
BBWAA got it correct....Good choice!!!
A great choice...the right choice. It's a good thing the vote was done before the playoffs. After Posey's great job in the Atlanta series and Heywood's dreadful performance, Posey may have received all of the 1st place votes.
Well deserved...congrats Buster!
Way to go. Giants make it to the top. Can't wait till next year.
How anyone could vote for Heyward over Posey is beyond me. Heyward was a very good rookie who helped to make his team more competitive.
Posey may have been the MVP of the offensive of a team that was .500 at mid-season and went onto win the World Series. And he posted similar HR and RBI totals in 30+ fewer games.
Posey is ROY, end of story.
Buster did not EDGE out anyone- He whomped em all- 20 first place votes to heyward 9! Not close, not an edge, but a sizeable victory!
This is one award that they absolutely got right. Buster Posey hands down Rookie of the Year!
GREAT choice, I hope this kid plays for many, many years. What a great baseball name too.......BUSTER POSEY!! I love it.