Indianapolis Announces 2021 Team Award Recipients

INDIANAPOLIS – The Indianapolis Indians announced today that Christian Bethancourt, Shea Spitzbarth, Bligh Madris and Hunter Owen have been named as team award winners for the 2021 season. Bethancourt and Spitzbarth headline the group as Team MVP and Pitcher of the Year, respectively.

Bethancourt, 30, called game in walk-off fashion five times at Victory Field this summer, the most by an Indians player in the last five seasons, to earn himself the Team MVP honor. After being signed by Pittsburgh as a minor league free agent on May 1, he made his debut with the club on May 13 and just four games later roped his first walk-off hit of the season. Three of his five walk-off hits occurred with the Indians facing a deficit, including a heads-up baserunning play that drew defenders off home plate and allowed Wilmer Difo to score the game-winning run on June 20. Bethancourt has appeared in 91 games with the Indians this season (through Sept. 30) and leads team qualifiers with a .278 batting average (91-for-327), has a team-high 58 RBI and the third-most home runs with 13. On Sept. 26 at Omaha, he recorded the fourth two-homer game of his 13-year professional career and his first-ever five-RBI performance. Defensively, Bethancourt has thrown out 43 percent of would-be basestealers.

Spitzbarth, 26, was named the Indians Pitcher of the Year after being one of their most consistent relievers for the entirety of the season, compiling a 2.12 ERA (11er/46.2ip) with 41 strikeouts. The right-hander did not allow an earned run in 18.0 consecutive innings pitched from May 23-July 6. He dominated opposing batters with a 1.41 ERA (5er/32.0ip), 1.03 WHIP and .179 average against (20-for-112) through July 29, leading to him having his contract selected by Pittsburgh for his major league debut on Aug. 2. He tossed 2.1 scoreless innings in his first two big-league appearances and caught Matt Duffy looking in his fourth outing on Sept. 5 for his first MLB strikeout.

Madris, 25, earned Indy’s Rookie of the Year award in his first Triple-A campaign. After being promoted from Double-A Altoona on May 19, he played his way into the Indians everyday lineup and hit .270 (89-for-330) with 23 doubles, nine home runs and 55 RBI in 103 games as of Sept. 30. He was named the Indians August Player of the Month after leading the team with a .913 OPS in 24 games and has carried that success well into September, working a career-high and team-best 15-game hitting streak from Aug. 28-Sept. 15. He has also reached base safely in a team-high tying 25 consecutive games dating back to Aug. 27. He currently leads team qualifiers with a .350 on-base percentage and 33 extra-base hits.

Owen, 28, leads the Indians with 20 home runs to be named the team’s Silver Slugger this season. He hit his 20th home run on Sept. 26 at Omaha to set a new career-high, topping his previous best of 19 home runs in 2019. His 2021 campaign included his major league debut with Pittsburgh in San Diego on May 5, a pair of two-home run games and his second career grand slam, hit on June 19 at Victory Field. In 96 games, Owen has hit .235 (77-for-328) and leads the team with 55 runs scored, ranks second with 148 total bases and is third in extra-base hits (31), RBI (53) and total hits.