The nonprofit Los Angeles Sports Council will present its 15th annual L.A. Sports Awards Thursday evening, honoring the “best of the year in sports” in the Southland over the past year.
Major League Baseball MVPs Mike Trout of the Angels and Cody Bellinger of the Dodgers will be honored as the sportsmen of the year, while UCLA softball pitcher Rachel Garcia will be recognized as the 2019 sportswoman of the year.
Trout earned his third career American League MVP award last year, slamming 45 home runs and tallying 104 RBIs. Bellinger, meanwhile, was named National League MVP, completing the 2019 season with a .305 batting average, 47 home runs and 115 RBIs.
Garcia, a junior, helped lead the Bruins to a national championship by compiling a 29-1 record. She was named Most Outstanding Player at the Women’s College World Series, and won the Honda Cup as the Collegiate Female Athlete of the Year.
Bob Bradley of the Los Angeles Football Club will be honored as the coach of the year, while Uchenna Nwosu of the Los Angeles Chargers will be presented with the Mayor’s Community Athlete of the Year award.
Clippers President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank and President of Business Operations Gillian Zucker will be jointly honored as the executives of the year. The sports council credited the pair for the team’s successful rebuilding effort over the past five years, culminating with the off-season acquisitions of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.