After 17 games, we’ve reached the exact midway-point to the MLS season for the Colorado Rapids in what has been an eventful and strange year. It’s a great time to hand out some metaphorical hardware to the deserving players — good and bad.
Midseason Awards
Best Addition
The Candidates: Keegan Rosenberry, Lalas Abubakar, Kei Kamara, Nicolas Mezquida
The Winner: Lalas Abubakar
The Rapids added 11 players to the first-team roster in 2019 by every means available: the SuperDraft (Andre Shinyashiki), free agency (Benny Feilhaber) trade (Nicolas Mezquida, Kei Kamara, Keegan Rosenberry, Diego Rubio, and Jonathan Lewis), loan (Lalas Abubakar) and homegrown signing (Sebastian Anderson).
But the fans are resoundingly clear on this one: the player that has stood out the most in terms of changing the team’s fortunes is Abubakar.
Calling all fans: we're doing midseason awards over at 's Backpass. Help us out and vote!
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Who has been the *best addition* to the 2019 roster?— Soccer Rabbi (@soccer_rabbi)
With the exception of the loss Colorado took to RSL in his first game, the Rapids have not lost a game that Abubakar has played in since he joined the team. His 7.0 clearances per game lead the team, and his defensive contributions have steadied the club’s backline immensely. In 11 games without Abubakar this season, Colorado conceded 2.63 goals per match. In the five games Abubakar has played since joining the squad, the Rapids have conceded an average of just 1.2 goals per game.
Bounceback player
The Candidates: Tommy Smith, Danny Wilson, Tim Howard, Jack Price
The Winner: (Tie) Smith and Wilson
There were a lot of guys that came to the Mile High City in 2018 with great expectations on their shoulders and didn’t live up to the hype. There were other Rapids veterans who had a down year last season and were hoping to rebound a little for this year.
Vote #2. Calling all fans: we're doing midseason awards over at 's Backpass. Help us out and vote!
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Which player earns the title 'comeback player of the (half) year'?— Soccer Rabbi (@soccer_rabbi)
This vote is a little unsure all around. Tommy Smith and Danny Wilson had been disappointing in 2018, but have a few good results recently indicated a turnaround? Were Tim Howard and Jack Price “bad” enough in 2018 to even make them eligible for this award, or are they just kind-of-average players, muddling along with slightly-above-average performances this year? This is a good topic to stick a post-it note on and revisit in four more months.
Kid Gorgeous – Best Player Under 23 Years Old
The Candidates: Cole Bassett, Jonathan Lewis, Andre Shinyashiki, Sam Vines
The Winner: Andre Shinyashiki
Not since 2013, when Dillon Serna, Dillon Powers and Shane O’Neill were all regular starters in Commerce City, has Colorado seen a significant contribution from their youngsters. But this season the Rapids have given significant minutes to a number of players under the age of 23.
Vote #4. Calling all fans: we're doing midseason awards over at 's Backpass. Help us out and vote!
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What under-23-years-old player has been most valuable to the team?— Soccer Rabbi (@soccer_rabbi)
University of Denver product Andre Shinyashiki has been the biggest revelation for the club, whether serving as a second-striker underneath Kei Kamara or as a wide midfielder providing offense at an angle. One could argue the big light switch for the Rapids this years wasn’t a change in formation or tactics, but rather the moment when this team figured out how to put Shinyashiki in the lineup and use him the right way. He’s , too.
Biggest Dud
The Candidates: Diego Rubio, Kellyn Acosta, Dillon Serna, Axel Sjoberg
The Winner: (Tie) Serna and Sjoberg
I didn’t want to traumatize the fanbase by making them vote on “biggest dud,” so this one is all my call. Referring to a player as a “dud” is pretty harsh, but what else do you call it when a team pays you a six-figure salary, hands you a starting job and you underperform expectations?
Colorado began 2019 with two very open positions: left back and centerback. With the departure of Edgar Castillo and the poor play of the Rapids backline in 2018, veterans Dillon Serna and Axel Sjoberg were poised to seize starting jobs and show everybody that they can help this team win games. Both failed badly. Serna put in several good performances in March before getting absolutely destroyed at left back in two successive games in April, against Houston and Orlando. He was subbed off early in both of those matches and lost the job at left back for good. Sjoberg too had his chances, and blew them. Getting the start in the opening match of the year on March 2, Sjoberg committed a handball in the box in the 27th minute, conceding a penalty kick and drawing a red card and a sending-off. On March 30, he had an own goal against Houston. On April 6, he had another handball in the box that gave Orlando a penalty kick and goal. And June 12, Sjoberg made a sloppy slide tackle that earned him a second yellow and a sending-off against New Mexico United in US Open Cup play. Too many mental mistakes for Axel in too many critical situations.
Thankfully, these are midseason awards, so both players have the chance to alter the narrative before October. Fingers crossed for both of them.
Best Goal
The Candidates: Cole Bassett v. ORL, Nicolas Mezquida v. CLB, Jonathan Lewis v. PHI, Kei Kamara v. MIN
The Winner: Mezquida v. CLB
Kei Kamara’s “rise-and-shine” power header against Minnesota is really impressive, and Jonathan Lewis’ millimeter-perfect accuracy on the volley versus Philadelphia, but the fans dug Mezquida’s end-of-the-game winner May 25th the most. Drama rules, folks.
Vote #3. Calling all fans: we're doing midseason awards over at 's Backpass. Help us out and vote!
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Which is the best *goal of the year* so far? GIFs follow the poll.— Soccer Rabbi (@soccer_rabbi)
Best Save
The Candidates: Tim Howard – Week 1 v. POR, Tim Howard – Week 12 v. RSL, Clint Irwin – Week 14 v. PHI, Tim Howard – Week 16 v. VAN
Current Leader: Tim Howard – Week 1 vs POR
Great goalkeeping is the result of good position, good technique and cat-like reflexes. All four of these goals have a different mix of those characteristics: some are more of one than the other. Personally, I think Tim Howard’s Week 12 save against RSL is the most impressive. But context also matters: the Rapids lost that game, so the save doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Irwin’s Week 14 save in stoppage time preserved a 1-1 road draw for Colorado. And Howard had five saves against Portland, on opening day, in a blizzard, to preserve a 3-3 draw when the Rapids were playing down a man. So if that one wins, I get it.
Vote #6 – Final Vote. Calling all fans: we're doing midseason awards over at 's Backpass. Help us out and vote!
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Which of the saves below is your save of the year (so far)?— Soccer Rabbi (@soccer_rabbi)
Note: At time of publication, this poll was still open.
Midseason MVP
The Candidates: Kei Kamara (8 g 1 a), Jack Price (0 g 5 a), Kellyn Acosta (1 g, 2 a, 2.2 tackles per game), Lalas Abubakar (7.0 clearances per game)
Current Leader: Kei Kamara
Kei Kamara has been running away with this one, and rightfully so. His 8 goals at midseason has him on pace for possibly 16 on the year. The last time a Rapids player scored 16 goals in a season was in 2009, when now-interim manager Conor Casey was banging them in on the daily. Kamara has been an exceptional player for the Rapids, creating chances, getting into dangerous spots and generally making opposing teams have to deal with him or suffer the consequences.
Vote #5. Calling all fans: we're doing midseason awards over at 's Backpass. Help us out and vote!
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Who is your midseason MVP?— Soccer Rabbi (@soccer_rabbi)
Note: At time of publication, this poll was still open.
