MLB The Show's Finest players of 2021

You may have thought MLB Awards season was over. You figured that once Shohei Ohtani capped off his magnificent, unbelievable, what-did-we-just-witness season by collecting the American League MVP award, you were done. But that's not quite true. Because while those award winners have some serious hardware to take home and gaze upon all winter, there's not a whole lot you get to do with it.

Fortunately, there's MLB The Show's Finest. The team at San Diego Studio selected one player from each MLB team to celebrate their standout performance from 2021. Some are clearly the team's best player, and others are for the guys who may not earn the awards, but made a definite impact on their club. In the end, they wanted to make sure they celebrated every team and all the best players in the sport for their accomplishments.

Even better: You can now earn and play with these players in MLB The Show's Diamond Dynasty mode. So, we'll share with you their picks -- the players whose souped up cards you can unlock -- and we'll highlight why they deserved the nod.

Angels: Raisel Iglesias

Yeah, it's not Ohtani, but listen, Ohtani can't win everything. While Ohtani dominated the airwaves, our discussions and even our dreams, Iglesias put together a great season at the back of the Angels' bullpen. He tied a career-high with 34 saves and struck out 103 batters in just 70 innings.

Astros: Kyle Tucker

In 2018, Tucker used his smooth swing as a stand-in for Ted Williams in a documentary. In 2021, Tucker put together a season Williams would appreciate. The outfielder hit .294, smashed 30 home runs and stole 14 bases. He came up big in the Astros' postseason run, too, adding four more home runs and 15 RBIs before Houston fell two games shy of a World Series title.

Athletics: Frankie Montas

The A's finished with the fourth-best team ERA from their starters and you can thank Montas' 2021 breakout for that. The 28-year-old topped 100 innings for the first time in his career and finished sixth in the Cy Young Award balloting thanks to 3.37 ERA and 207 Ks across 187 innings. The A's are rumored to be listening to offers on Montas, so expect to hear his name mentioned a lot this winter.

Blue Jays: Marcus Semien

A Gold Glove, a Silver Slugger and 45 HRs from a second baseman? Yeah, that'll work. That's a record for dingers from the keystone too, by the way.

Braves: Freddie Freeman

Want a sense of just how important Freeman is to Braves fans? Look at this reaction after his NLDS-clinching go-ahead home run. Freeman may be a free agent this winter, but he'll never have to worry about buying a drink in Atlanta ever again.

Brewers: Corbin Burnes

After his NL Cy Young Award victory, I think we can safely say that Corbin Burnes is now more famous than Corbin Bleu of "High School Musical" fame.

Cardinals: Paul Goldschmidt

America's First Baseman is back. Goldschmidt's first year in St. Louis was a mixed bag, but the last two years have proved that was all just a mirage. Goldschmidt topped 30 homers for the sixth time and, proving that first baseman can run, went a perfect 12-for-12 in stolen base attempts. His 81 percent success rate in swiping bags is the best all-time among first basemen with at least 100 SBs. (Of course, only 11 first basemen have ever even accomplished that, so ...)

Cubs: Patrick Wisdom

What's that saying -- with age comes wisdom? That seemed to work for the Cubs' rookie third baseman. It took until Wisdom was 29-years-old and with his third organization before receiving regular big league at-bats, but once he did, he came alive. His 28 home runs led all National League rookies, and his .823 OPS was fourth among all rookies with at least 200 PA.

D-backs: Ketel Marte

Marte missed nearly half the season with hamstring strains to both legs, but when he was on the field, he looked every bit the MVP Award finalist he was in 2019. Marte moved back to his old position at second base to end the season, and with prospects Corbin Carroll and Alek Thomas on the way, Marte could soon be the face of the next competitive D-backs team.

Dodgers: Max Muncy

The Majors are almost at the maximum allowable amount of Muncy, so it's fitting that the Dodgers' Muncy had such a strong year in 2021. One of the most disciplined hitters in the game, when Muncy does decide to swing, he often hits it a long, long way.

Giants: Brandon Crawford

34 years old is when shortstops usually start sliding down the defensive spectrum. Not for the Giants' star. Crawford collected his fourth Gold Glove Award -- his first since 2017 -- all while setting career highs in almost every offensive category including home runs, average, OPS, and, yes, stolen bases. Crawford's clearly found the Time Shifting Chronometer allowing him to play in the time stream and we are all very jealous.

Guardians: Emmanuel Clase

No one hit triple digits like the Guardians' closer, who averaged 100.7 mph on his fastball. That's like if you went out for a jog and your average speed would set records in the 100-meter dash. He used that heater to good effect: The Cleveland closer saved 24 games and gave up only two home runs in 69 1/3 innings.

Mariners: Mitch Haniger

The M's were the surprise team in September, using their fun differential to nearly upset the postseason race. A lot of that was thanks to Haniger. The right fielder set career highs in HRs (39) and RBIs (a perfectly round 100), knocking out a bunch of big dingers in the season's final weeks to keep Seattle's dreams alive.

Marlins: Sandy Alcantara

Jacob deGrom is still the king of the NL East ... but Alcantara is making it close. Alcantara is a true five-pitch pitcher who topped the 200-inning and 200-strikeout mark this season. The Marlins are rich in pitching prospects, but they've already found their ace.

Mets: Marcus Stroman

When he's not tweeting or shimmying his way off the mound, Stroman was the rock in the center of New York's rotation. He was the only starter on the team to make 30-plus starts and his 3.02 ERA led all qualified pitchers on the team.

Nationals: Juan Soto

Soto finished second in the NL MVP Award voting and it's only a matter of time before the slugger takes home the award for himself. Always fearsome, Soto took it to a new level in the second-half of the season. Soto posted a .348/.525/.639 battling line after the All-Star break meaning, yes, he was on base more often than he was not. How can pitchers stop that?

Orioles: Ryan Mountcastle

Mountcastle not only hit 33 home runs on his way to finishing sixth in the Rookie of the Year Award race, but thanks to the oddity that was the 2020 season, it was his second time finishing in the top-10 for ROY. While the Pirates' Ke'Bryan Hayes also received votes for the second time in his career, that has only happened to one other player: Gregg Jefferies. That alone is enough to warrant a card.

Padres: Fernando Tatis Jr.

Could it really be anyone but the most exciting, watchable, do-not-change-the-channel-when-the-Padres-are-on superstar? Tatis finished third in the NL MVP Award race. I have a feeling it will be a battle between Tatis, Soto, and Bryce Harper every year for the next decade.

Phillies: Zack Wheeler

While Harper took home the NL MVP Award, Wheeler came within 10 points of tying Corbin Burnes for the Cy Young Award. Wheeler led the Majors in innings pitched last year, while posting a solid 2.78 ERA. If Wheeler and Harper can repeat their 2021 performances and Aaron Nola can bounce back next year, the Phillies will be one nigh-impossible team to beat.

Pirates: Bryan Reynolds

Follow enough trade rumor-tracking accounts online and you've probably seen Reynolds' name appear more often than Pete Davidson winds up on Page Six. But there's good reason for that: He's really, really good. Reynolds bounced back from a tough 2020 to have the best year of his short career. He posted career highs in home runs, triples and OPS and made his first trip to the All-Star Game. The Pirates have a long history of great outfielders and Reynolds is just the latest name to join that pantheon.

Rangers: Nate Lowe

Lowe impressed in his first full season. The first baseman hit 18 home runs, drew a team-leading 80 walks (although, he barely passed Joey Gallo, who was traded to to the Yankees at midseason), and was a perfect 8-for-8 when stealing bases.

Rays: Brandon Lowe

It was a big year for players named Lowe. Overshadowed by that other second baseman in the division (cough, Semien, cough), Lowe smashed 39 home runs -- tying Carlos Peña for the second-most in Rays franchise history -- and drove in 99 runs, all while doing most of his damage while leading off. That's not a friendly sight for a pitcher to see at the start of a game.

Reds: Jonathan India

Their very own Rookie of the Year Award-winning Pirate of the Caribbean! In a big year for keystoners, India stood out. The 24-year-old hit 21 home runs, stole 12 bases and, showing his fearlessness, drew a National League-leading 23 hit-by-pitches.

Red Sox: J.D. Martinez

The very definition of a "professional hitter," Martinez bounced back from a down season to once again strike fear into the hearts of hurlers. His 42 doubles were a career-high, while his batting line nearly matched his career averages. The guy is a machine.

Rockies: C.J. Cron

You gotta start feeling bad for Cron. Playing for his fifth team in as many seasons, Cron did what he always does: Crush dingers. Subtract the shortened 2020 season, and Cron topped 25 home runs for the third-straight season, while his .905 OPS was more than 100 points higher than Trevor Story's for best on the club.

Royals: Salvador Perez

Say hello to your new single-season catcher home run champ. That's right, Perez's career year saw him crack 48 home runs and drive in 121 runs. Not only was he the first catcher to top 40 dingers in a season since Javy López in 2003, but he also passed Johnny Bench to make the catcher's record all his own.

Tigers: Jeimer Candelario

The rebuilding Tigers look set at third base now. Candelario broke out with his best season in 2020, but because of how short the schedule was, no one was sure if it was for real. His 2021 answered that question. Candelario smashed 42 doubles to go along with 16 home runs to give the Tigers some solid thump in the middle of the lineup. With top prospect Spencer Torkelson on the way, the Tigers may be back into the AL Central conversation sooner than we all expected.

Twins: Jorge Polanco

The former shortstop moved over to primarily play second this year -- hey, what was up with second basemen this season? -- and proceeded to smash a career-high and team-leading 33 home runs. In a rough year for Twins fans, Polanco was a near-constant highlight.

White Sox: Yoán Moncada

On a team filled with sluggers, it can be hard to stand out. But Moncada, with some of the thickest forearms in baseball, helped turn the White Sox lineup into an absolute juggernaut. Locking down the hot corner, Moncada displayed solid defense, got on base at a .375 clip and smashed 14 home runs. One of them went out in the most wildly unexpected way.

Yankees: Gerrit Cole

Cole came up a little short of the AL Cy Young Award, but he did everything you could ever want from a staff ace: Cole won 16 games, led the team with 181 1/3 innings and was third in the Majors with 243 strikeouts. His best showing came against the AL Champion Astros on July 10. Cole pitched a complete game three-hitter that day, striking out 12.