MVP Hudler Has an All-Time Great Postseason

By KYLE KEOUGH
Double Day Daily

Many purists will look to Durham's three-headed pitching monster--Rafaels Pena and Mercado and Miguel Alou--as the reason for the Tobacconists' World Series title. Their combined 9-1 postseason record set the standard for frontline rotations for seasons to come.

But Durham's oft-forgotten MVP, Dan Hudler, cemented his place with perhaps the greatest postseason run for a single player in Double Day history. There have been others, but Hudler, now a two-time Most Valuable Player, carried the Tobacconists offensively throughout the postseason, and in doing so proved him to be among Double Day's best players.

With all the talk of Rafael Pena and Rafael Mercado, it might be Hudler who is Durham's most valuable asset.

Now in uncharted territory as a multiple-time MVP at 25 years old, Hudler batted .370 with 8 home runs and 24 runs batted in, in all of 16 postseason games. His OPS was a mind-boggling 1.341.

Hudler has long been an undervalued commodity. Talks of the game's best rarely include him - his feats are often overlooked in such conversations. But it's hard to ignore the offensive display that the young left fielder put on throughout the postseason. In the process, he emerged as one of the game's great clutch players.

With Durham expected to contend again next season, Hudler will attempt an unheard-of threepeat as Most Valuable Player. This time, however, with a World Series title to his credit, everyone will know just who he is.