California League Most Valuable Player Award

California League
Most Valuable Player Award

Sport	Baseball
League	California League
Awarded for	Regular season most valuable player of the California League
Country	United States
Presented by	California League
History
First award	Spider Jorgensen (1941)
Most recent	Lazaro Montes (2024)

The California League Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual award given to the best player in minor league baseball's California League. In 1941, John Jorgensen won the first ever California League MVP Award. After the cancellation of the 2020 season,[1] the league was known as the Low-A West in 2021 before reverting to the California League name in 2022.[2][3]

First basemen, with 13 winners, have won the most among infielders, followed by shortstops (7), third basemen (5), and second basemen (4). Ten catchers have also won the award. Seven players who won the award were pitchers. Twenty-eight outfielders have won the MVP Award, the most of any position. Six players played during seasons for which position information is unavailable.

Sixteen players from the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers Major League Baseball (MLB) organization have won the MVP Award, more than any other, followed by the San Diego Padres organization (8); the California/Los Angeles Angels and San Francisco Giants organizations (6); the Minnesota Twins organization (5); the St. Louis Cardinals organization (4); the Colorado Rockies, Kansas City/Oakland Athletics, Milwaukee Brewers, and Seattle Mariners organization (3); the Arizona Diamondbacks, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Tampa Bay Devil Rays organizations (2); and the Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians, Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, and New York Mets organizations (1). Six players competed for teams that were unaffiliated with Major League Baseball organizations.

Key

*	Indicates multiple award winners in the same year
Position	Indicates the player's primary position if known

Winners

Tommy Glaviano, 1946 California League MVP

Rocco Baldelli, 2002 California League MVP

Paul Goldschmidt, 2010 California League MVP

Billy Hamilton, 2012 California League MVP

Corey Seager, 2014 California League MVP

A. J. Reed, 2015 California League MVP

Year	Winner	Team	Organization	Position	Ref(s).
1941	Spider Jorgensen	Santa Barbara Saints	Brooklyn Dodgers	Third baseman	[4]
1942	Sal Taormina	San Jose Owls	unaffiliated	Outfielder	[5]
1946	Tommy Glaviano	Fresno Cardinals	St. Louis Cardinals	unknown	[6]
1947	Ed Samcoff	Stockton Ports	unaffiliated		[7]
1949	Earl Escalante	Bakersfield Indians	Cleveland Indians	Pitcher	[8]
1950	Dick Wilson	Modesto Reds	Pittsburgh Pirates	First baseman	[9]
1952	Larry Jackson	Fresno Cardinals	St. Louis Cardinals	Pitcher	[10]
1953	Tex Clevenger	San Jose Red Sox	Boston Red Sox	Pitcher	[11]
1954	Bob Thorpe	Stockton Ports	Chicago Cubs	Pitcher	[12]
1955	Pumpsie Green		unaffiliated	unknown	[13]
1956	Dick Whitman	San Jose JoSox			[14]
1957	Vada Pinson	Visalia Redlegs	Cincinnati Redlegs		[15]
1958	Neil Wilson	Fresno Giants	San Francisco Giants	Catcher	[16]
1959	Willie Davis	Reno Silver Sox	Los Angeles Dodgers	Outfielder	[17]
1960	Robert Arrighi			Pitcher	[18]
1961	Don Williams			Shortstop	[19]
1962	William Haas			First baseman	[20]
1963	José Vidal		Pittsburgh Pirates	Outfielder	[21]
1964	Ollie Brown	Fresno Giants	San Francisco Giants	Outfielder	[22]
1965	Mike Epstein	Stockton Ports	Baltimore Orioles	First baseman	[23]
1966	Dave Duncan	Modesto Reds	Kansas City Athletics	Catcher	[24]
1967	Leron Lee		St. Louis Cardinals	Outfielder	[25]
1968	Ted Simmons			Catcher	[26]
1969	Junior Kennedy	Stockton Ports	Baltimore Orioles	Shortstop	[27]
1970	Sonny Johnson	Bakersfield Dodgers	Los Angeles Dodgers	Outfielder	[28]
1971	George Theodore	Visalia Mets	New York Mets	Outfielder	[29]
1972	Skip James	Fresno Giants	San Francisco Giants	First baseman	[30]
1973	John Balaz	Salinas Packers	California Angels	Outfielder	[31]
1974	Gary Alexander	Fresno Giants	San Francisco Giants	Catcher	[32]
1975	Gene Richards	Reno Silver Sox	unaffiliated	Outfielder	[33]
1976	Thad Bosley	Salinas Angels	California Angels	Outfielder	[34]
1977	Kelly Snider	Lodi Dodgers	Los Angeles Dodgers	First baseman	[35]
1978	Steve Douglas	Visalia Oaks	Minnesota Twins	Outfielder	[36]
1979*	Mike Marshall	Lodi Dodgers	Los Angeles Dodgers	First baseman	[37]
1979*	Les Pearsey	Visalia Oaks	Minnesota Twins	Third baseman	[38]
1980*	Jaime Cocanower	Stockton Ports	Milwaukee Brewers	Pitcher	[39]
1980*	Candy Maldonado	Lodi Dodgers	Los Angeles Dodgers	Outfielder	[40]
1981	Kent Hrbek	Visalia Oaks	Minnesota Twins	First baseman	[41]
1982	Kevin McReynolds	Reno Padres	San Diego Padres	Outfielder	[42]
1983	Stan Holmes	Visalia Oaks	Minnesota Twins	Catcher	[43]
1984	Glenn Braggs	Stockton Ports	Milwaukee Brewers	Outfielder	[44]
1985	Eric Hardgrave	Reno Padres	San Diego Padres	First baseman	[45]
1986	Ty Dabney	Fresno Giants	San Francisco Giants	Third baseman	[46]
1987	Luis Lopez	Bakersfield Dodgers	Los Angeles Dodgers	Catcher	[47]
1988	Paul Faries	Riverside Red Wave	San Diego Padres	Second baseman	[48]
1989	John Jaha	Stockton Ports	Milwaukee Brewers	First baseman	[49]
1990	Frank Bolick	Stockton Ports San Bernardino Spirit	Milwaukee Brewers Seattle Mariners	unknown	[50]
1991	Matt Mieske	High Desert Mavericks	San Diego Padres	unknown	[51]
1992	Marty Cordova	Visalia Oaks	Minnesota Twins	Outfielder	[52]
1993	Tim Clark	High Desert Mavericks	Florida Marlins	Outfielder	[53]
1994	Todd Greene	Lake Elsinore Storm	California Angels	Catcher	[54]
1995	Adam Riggs	San Bernardino Spirit	Los Angeles Dodgers	Second baseman	[55]
1996	D. T. Cromer	Modesto A's	Oakland Athletics	Outfielder	[56]
1997	Mike Stoner	High Desert Mavericks	unaffiliated	Outfielder	[57]
1998	Brad Penny		Arizona Diamondbacks	Pitcher	[58]
1999	Chin-Feng Chen	San Bernardino Stampede	Los Angeles Dodgers	Outfielder	[59]
2000	Juan Silvestre	Lancaster JetHawks	Seattle Mariners	Outfielder	[60]
2001	Xavier Nady	Lake Elsinore Storm	San Diego Padres	First baseman	[61]
2002	Rocco Baldelli	Bakersfield Blaze	Tampa Bay Devil Rays	Outfielder	[62]
2003	Josh Barfield	Lake Elsinore Storm	San Diego Padres	Second baseman	[63]
2004	Brian Stavisky	Modesto A's	Oakland Athletics	Outfielder	[64]
2005	Brandon Wood	Rancho Cucamonga Quakes	Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim	Shortstop	[65]
2006	Reid Brignac	Visalia Oaks	Tampa Bay Devil Rays	Shortstop	[66]
2007	Bubba Bell	Lancaster JetHawks	Boston Red Sox	Outfielder	[67]
2008	Carlos Santana	Inland Empire 66ers	Los Angeles Dodgers	Catcher	[68]
2009	Alex Liddi	High Desert Mavericks	Seattle Mariners	Third baseman	[69]
2010	Paul Goldschmidt	Visalia Rawhide	Arizona Diamondbacks	First baseman	[70]
2011	Kent Matthes	Modesto Nuts	Colorado Rockies	Outfielder	[71]
2012	Billy Hamilton	Bakersfield Blaze	Cincinnati Reds	Shortstop	[72]
2013	Zach Borenstein	Inland Empire 66ers	Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim	Outfielder	[73]
2014	Corey Seager	Rancho Cucamonga Quakes	Los Angeles Dodgers	Shortstop	[74]
2015	A. J. Reed	Lancaster JetHawks	Houston Astros	First baseman	[75]
2016	Luis Urías	Lake Elsinore Storm	San Diego Padres	Second baseman	[76]
2017	D. J. Peters	Rancho Cucamonga Quakes	Los Angeles Dodgers	Outfielder	[77]
2018	Rylan Bannon			Third baseman	[78]
2019*	Luis Campusano	Lake Elsinore Storm	San Diego Padres	Catcher	[79]
2019*	Luis Castro	Lancaster JetHawks	Colorado Rockies	First baseman	[80]
2020	None selected (season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic)				[1]
2021	Luis Matos	San Jose Giants	San Francisco Giants	Outfielder	[81][82]
2022	Edgar Quero	Inland Empire 66ers	Los Angeles Angels	Catcher	[83][84]
2023	Ryan Ritter	Fresno Grizzlies	Colorado Rockies	Shortstop	[85][86]
2024	Lazaro Montes	Modesto Nuts	Seattle Mariners	Outfielder	[87][88]

References

General

• "California League Award Winners". California League. Minor League Baseball. Retrieved December 22, 2016.

Specific

1. "2020 Minor League Baseball Season Shelved". Minor League Baseball. June 30, 2020. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
2. Reichard, Kevin (February 12, 2021). "Minor League Baseball Overhaul Unveiled". Ballpark Digest. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
3. "Historical League Names to Return in 2022". Minor League Baseball. March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
4. "Spider Jorgensen Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
5. "Sal Taormina Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
6. "Tommy Glaviano Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
7. "Ed Samcoff Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
8. "Earl Escalante Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
9. "Dick Wilson Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
10. "Larry Jackson Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
11. "Tex Clevenger Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
12. "Bob Thorpe Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
13. "Pumpsie Green Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
14. "Dick Whitman Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
15. "Dick Whitman Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
16. "Neil Wilson Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
17. "Willie Davis Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
18. "Robert Arrighi Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
19. "Don Williams Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
20. "William Haas Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
21. "Jose Vidal Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
22. "Ollie Brown Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
23. "Mike Epstein Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
24. "Dave Duncan Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
25. "Leron Lee Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
26. "Ted Simmons Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
27. "Junior Kennedy Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
28. "Sonny Johnson Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
29. "George Theodore Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
30. "Skip James Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
31. "John Balaz Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
32. "Gary Alexander Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
33. "Gene Richards Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
34. "Thad Bosley Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
35. "Kelly Snider Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
36. "Steve Douglas Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
37. "Mike Marshall Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
38. "Les Pearsey Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
39. "Jaime Cocanower Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
40. "Candy Maldonado Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
41. "Kent Hrbek Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
42. "Kevin McReynolds Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
43. "Stan Holmes Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
44. "Glenn Braggs Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
45. "Eric Hardgrave Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
46. "Ty Dabney Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
47. "Luis Lopez Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
48. "Paul Faries Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
49. "John Jaha Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
50. "Frank Bolick Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
51. "Matt Mieske Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
52. "Marty Cordova Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
53. "Marty Cordova Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
54. "Todd Greene Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
55. "Adam Riggs Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
56. "D.T. Cromer Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
57. "Mike Stoner Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
58. "Mike Stoner Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
59. "Chin-Feng Chen Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
60. "Juan Silvestre Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
61. "Xavier Nady Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
62. "Rocco Baldelli Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
63. "Josh Barfield Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
64. "Brian Stavisky Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
65. "Brandon Wood Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
66. "Reid Brignac Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
67. "Bubba Bell Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
68. "Carlos Santana Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
69. "Alex Liddi Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
70. "Paul Goldschmidt Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
71. "Kent Matthes Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
72. "Billy Hamilton Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
73. "Zach Borenstein Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
74. "Corey Seager Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
75. "A.J. Reed Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
76. "Luis Urias Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
77. "D. J. Peters Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
78. "Rylan Bannon Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
79. "Luis Campusano Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
80. "Luis Castro Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
81. "Postseason All-Stars". Minor League Baseball. Archived from the original on October 10, 2021. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
82. "Luis Matos Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
83. Jackson, Josh (November 10, 2022). "Single-A Award Winners and All-Stars". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
84. "Edgar Quero Minor Leagues Statistics". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
85. Avallone, Michael (September 19, 2023). "Here are the 2023 Single-A All-Stars and Award Winners". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
86. "Ryan Ritter Amateur, College & Minor Leagues Statistics". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
87. Jackson, Josh (September 18, 2024). "Check out the 2024 Single-A All-Stars and Award Winners". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
88. "Lazaro Montes Minor Leagues Statistics". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved September 19, 2024.