Scully, Rizzo among first 5 MLB Awards
Early winners, also featuring Ortiz, Ross and Game 7 of WS, revealed on social media
For two months you voted, and the first five MLB Esurance Awards winners were unveiled on Friday.
Winners in Best Call, TV/Radio; Best Social Media Personality; Best Player-Fan Interaction; Best Social Media Post; and Best Trending Topic were revealed on MLB social media. The rest of the winners were announced Friday night on MLB Network, with the Angels' Mike Trout taking home Best Major Leaguer.
• Complete 2016 Awards coverage | MLB Awards
Here are the five winners announced earlier Friday:
Best Call, TV/Radio: Vin Scully
At 11 a.m. ET, legendary Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully added another award to his ledger. Scully was named the winner in the Best Call, TV/Radio category for his description of Los Angeles' walk-off division-clinching win in September. Scully's competition included Charlie Slowes calling Max Scherzer's 20-strikeout game and Gary Cohen and Ron Darling's exuberant reaction to Bartolo Colon's home run.
Best Social Media Personality: Anthony Rizzo
The World Series champs earned their first win of the day at noon ET, when Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo won Best Social Media Personality. Rizzo, who is a blend of inspiring and amusing on social media, bested Rangers third baseman Adrián Beltré, Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig, Blue Jays starter Marcus Stroman and Mets starter Noah Syndergaard.
Best Player-Fan Interaction: David Ortiz
Retiring Red Sox legend David Ortiz became the day's third winner at 1 p.m. The former Red Sox slugger took home the award for Best Player-Fan Interaction for an unforgettable exchange with a young fan.
Ortiz had competition for the award, given to the top exchange between star and fan, with Mike Napoli, Chris Sale, Scherzer and the late José Fernández also providing great moments.
Best Social Media Post: David Ross
David Ross gave the Cubs two winners in the first four categories when he won for Best Social Media Post. Ross' epic selfies with the World Series trophy gave him an easy triumph in a field that also included Scully, Syndergaard, Jose Ramirez and Giancarlo Stanton.
Best Trending Topic: World Series Game 7
The afternoon concluded when World Series Game 7 was awarded Best Trending Topic -- not a surprise since the award is intended to honor what captivated baseball fans most in a given season. Colon's epic, improbable homer and Stanton's monster Home Run Derby were also in the running.
The Esurance MLB Awards annually honor Major League Baseball's greatest achievements as part of an industry-wide balloting process that includes five groups, each of which accounts for 20 percent of the overall vote: media, front-office personnel, retired MLB players, fans at MLB.com and Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) voters.
The MLB Awards are an all-inclusive program, encompassing the top players and performances from both the American League and National League from Opening Day through the end of the postseason.
Individual awards go to the Best Major Leaguer, in addition to the winners in the following categories: Best Hitter, Pitcher, Rookie, Defensive Player, Manager, Executive, Social Media Personality and Postseason Performer.
Winners are also recognized for the year's best Offensive Play, Defensive Play, Regular-Season Moment, Postseason Moment, Single-Game Performance, Social Media Post, Fan Catch, Broadcast Call, Player-Fan Interaction and Trending Topic.
Voting began on Sept. 19 at MLB.com/awards, shortly after the inaugural Esurance MLB Fans of the Year winners were announced.
Winners of the 2016 Esurance MLB Awards were unveiled at a reception in Manhattan's Chelsea Market, on MLB social channels and during a live broadcast on MLB Network and MLB.com.