"It's awards time for baseball, and this is a big one.

One of the biggest, in fact.

Justin Verlander was named player of the year by the Major League Baseball Players Association on Thursday, the first Tigers player so honored and just the second pitcher to receive the award. Earlier Thursday night, he was named pitcher of the year.

Last month, Verlander was named player of the year by The Sporting News.

And, he's a shoo-in to win the American League's Cy Young Award for his 24-5 season.

But will he make it a clean sweep with the AL MVP award this month, announced Nov. 21?"