MLB.com's 2009 "This Year in Baseball Awards"

It is that time of year again, when MLB.com rolls out another edition of the "This Year in Baseball awards." The awards may not be as prestigious as the awards handed out by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, but they are pretty cool nonetheless. That's because we, the fans, get to vote for them! While there are some years when I will turn a blind eye to these, this year is different. There are a slew of White Sox candidates for these awards, and they are all worthy of having a vote this year. Without further adieu, here are your eligible White Sox candidates:

Rookie of the Year: Gordon Beckham

Even though "Bacon" did not get called up to the bigs until June, he certainly made the most out of his opportunity once he arrived. Playing at a new position (third base), Beckham handled himself admirably at the hot corner, while hitting .270, with 14 home runs and 63 RBIs in just 103 games. His "weclome to the big leagues" moment had to be on June 27, when he singled in the bottom of the ninth inning off of Cubs reliever Jose Ascanio to win the game for the White Sox 8-7.

Setup Man of the Year: Matt Thornton

Thornton proved himself to be a solid setup man to Bobby Jenks (and, at times, proved to be a solid closer, too). He finished fifth in the AL with 24 holds, while recording 87 strikeouts to just 20 walks in 72.1 innings pitched. He also finished the season with a 2.74 ERA. Not too shabby, I'd say.

Performance of the Year: Mark Buehrle's perfect game against Tampa Bay on July 23.

This has to be the only no-brainer on this year's list of candidates. Even if you are not a Sox fan, you would be a fool to vote against a perfect game. Only 18 perfect games have ever been thrown in baseball history, so it's not like you get the opportunity to vote for one every year. Sorry Paulie, even though your three home run performance on July 7 against the Indians is on MLB.com's list of candidates, it does not even come close to Buehrle's performance.

Play of the Year: Dewayne Wise saves Buehrle's perfect game on July 23.

With one out in the top of the ninth inning, and with Buehrle having already retired the first 25 men he faced, Gabe Kapler socked a 2-2 pitch to the deep left-center field wall. It seemed for certain that the perfect game, no-hitter and shutout would all be gone with one swing of the bat. However, Dewayne Wise made one of the most remarkable situational catches in baseball history. By leaping high over the wall to bring the ball back in play, juggling it, and keeping it within his possession after falling to the ground, he preserved Mark Buehrle's bid for perfection.

There you have it. Four candidates, all of whom are worthy of selection. You can vote as many times as you want, but just make sure you do it before voting ends on December 11. Thanks, and as always, go Sox!