The season may have only ended last night, but it’s time to truly close the door on the Timbers’ 2023 campaign. Here are your 2023 Timbers season superlatives.

Player Awards

Player of the Season: Zac McGraw

Last night, the Supporter’s Player of the Year was awarded to Cristhian Paredes. It was a deserved win for him, but I voted for Zac McGraw and I’m going to stand by that. In a season where the Timbers’ defense was leaky (that’s a big simplification), McGraw was constantly hustling up and down the pitch to put out fires and contest crosses. This season started with Bill Tuiloma’s departure, and McGraw repaid the coaching staff’s faith in him with an excellent campaign. He alerted all of us to the fact that he was Canadian and played in his first international tournament (the Gold Cup) with his compatriots. I already did a deep dive on his excellent 2023, so click here if you want to read about how important he truly was to this team’s success. 

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Most Improved Player: Cristhian Paredes

After David Ayala left the pitch in St. Louis on April 29th, the Portland Timbers were left with two healthy central midfielders. One of which was Diego Chara, and the other was Cristhian Paredes. Paredes began this season on the bench behind Eryk Williamson, but was extremely productive in his substitute appearances. Then Williamson got hurt, but David Ayala was healthy enough to start, so Paredes continued to stay on the bench. What followed was the full emergence of Paredes as a true box-to-box weapon. His defensive work was outstanding and he regularly contributed to the Timbers’ attacks. An unknown Brazilian team came in with a bid of $2.2 million for him in the summer, and the Timbers rightfully declined. Whoever is the new head coach will have a headache trying to figure out how to set up the midfield with so many starting-quality options to choose from. Congratulations on an excellent campaign, Cristhian. 

Signing of the Season: Evander

Only Timbers fans could say that the new centerpiece player, who led the team in goals, didn’t do enough. Since he first stepped on the pitch, I was constantly reminding people that he is not Diego Valeri. As the season wore on, he began to get more and more comfortable with his teammates and grew into his role as an all-action 8. He began building his Timbers highlight reel with dazzling bits of skill, top-tier free kicks, and some outrageous long-range thunderbolts. He will define this next generation of the Timbers and is poised to take the league by storm next season. If that’s a disappointing debut, some of y’all really need to recalibrate your expectations. 9 goals and 4 assists for a team that was wildly inconsistent. And he’s only 25. We haven’t even come close to seeing the best of what he can offer. 

Signing of the Season (Value): Eric Miller

The Timbers really needed to dip into the MLS-veteran pool of players to provide some depth to this roster. Along came Eric Miller, who returned to Portland following a spell with the club’s U-23s. Nashville fans told us that we would love him, and they were right. Whenever he entered the starting lineup, he solidified the defense. He’s also an excellent person to have in the locker room. An excellent free agent pickup from Ned Grabavoy. Exercise his contract option for next year, please.

Comeback Player of the Year: Felipe Mora

Not only did Felipe Mora come back from two knee surgeries, he became vital to the team’s playoff push. He wore the captain’s armband for a few matches when Diego Chara was out of the team, and he did an unbelievable job on the pitch and in the locker room. Not only is he the surefire winner of this award on the Timbers, he has an excellent case to win the league-wide award. Last night, he ended the season with another goal, increasing his total to 6 goals in the last 10 games of the season. He’s a beloved figure in Portland and always shows up when it matters most. Although the sting of missing the playoffs has to hurt, he has to be proud of his own individual accomplishments in 2023. Vamos, Pipe. 

Don’t Fall in Love With a Loan Player Award: Franck Boli

No, he’s technically not a loan player, but Franck Boli fits the spirit of this award. He showed flashes of his skill throughout the season and finished as our second highest goal-scorer with 7 strikes. He showed some excellent chemistry with Evander in the first half of the season and hustled his ass off whenever he got on the pitch. Is he starting-quality? That part remains up for debate, but I would be perfectly fine with him returning to the team next season as a backup option. He scored within minutes on his debut and is constantly trying to get in the box and score. Sometimes the finishing isn’t there, but he has an excellent first touch and a top-tier work rate. There’s a double-digit scorer in there, and the Timbers can definitely bet on him reaching that milestone next year under the right coach.

Villain of the Season: Aljaz Ivacic

Do I really need to explain more? Read this.

Match Awards

Best Game: Portland 4-1 Seattle, April 15

Let the highlights speak for themselves. I still go back and watch them on a weekly basis. 

Best Game (Neutral Perspective): Portland 3-2 Columbus, July 15

This game was a shining example of Major League Soccer. The Timbers jumped out to a 2-0 lead courtesy of Dairon Asprilla before Lucas Zelarayan responded with a brace of his own. On Diego Valeri Day, Sebastian Blanco sent us all home happy with a sunshine winner (not just a sunshine goal). This type of high scoring, end-to-end game is what MLS is all about. And at the end of the season, it’s one of the Timbers’ best wins.

Snoozefest of the Year: Colorado 0-0 Portland, July 4th and 12th

Dear God, this one was dreadful. Not only did it take place across two days, but neither team really showed signs of scoring. File this one away and let it collect dust. No highlight video because you don’t want to watch it.

Worst Loss: Portland 1-2 Chicago, June 21

There are many different bad losses in 2023. However, the Timbers’ first loss to the Chicago Fire stands out among all of them. This game was the first time the Timbers have ever lost to the Fire. The Timbers had their chances, couldn’t capitalize, and the Fire grabbed a late winner. A horrific refereeing performance just adds to the hell that this game was. 

Worst Choke: Portland 0-1 Minnesota, May 20

To clarify: this award is about dropping points and not due to playoff positioning. The Montreal game and last night’s match do not qualify for this award. The Timbers had a home point locked up against a Minnesota team that was parking the bus on the road. Perfectly acceptable result. Until Aljaz Ivacic got careless with the ball in stoppage time, Minnesota countered and got the winner. The Timbers finished one point out of the playoff spots. Brutal.

Best Loss: Tigres 2-1 Portland, July 26

With the referee against them, the Timbers held on down a man for the entire second half before back-post defending on a set piece allowed the Mexican champions to walk away with the three points. Dario Zuparic put it best: “I said to Zac at halftime, ‘This is going to be a war, but we’re going to die like heroes.’ I would like to lose every game like this.” 

Best Comeback: Seattle 2-2 Portland, September 2

Spare me your second yellow excuses. This team looked like they had no right being on the pitch in that first half, and then Dairon Asprilla came off the bench and put the Timbers right back into it. Evander’s equalizer was felt from Lumen Field to Bainbridge Island. Another year without a loss at Lumen Field. Long may it continue.

Goal Awards

Goal of the Season: Dairon Asprilla vs. Seattle, April 15

Jake Zivin only got to call one Timbers game this season, and Dairon Asprilla rewarded him with this beauty. I remember sitting in 106 and just being dumbfounded. Dairon is truly a miracle worker, and this can be added to his list of masterpieces. Oh, what a night.

Team Goal of the Season: Claudio Bravo vs. LAFC, September 9

*skip to 2:49*

One of the best wins of the season, and this goal accomplished 2 things: put LAFC in a deeper hole right out of halftime and get another defender on the scoresheet. Bravo starts the movement and finishes it. It’s the counter-attacking soccer we all love to watch from the Timbers, but it begins because of a high press. This is what Miles Joseph brought to this team, and it was executed brilliantly on this quick counter. 

Evander Goal of the Season: Take Your Pick LOL

*skip to 4:47*

*skip to 0:25*

*skip to 1:26*

*skip to 1:02*

*skip to 5:41*

All four of these are incredible. If I had to rank them, I’d go Seattle, Tigres, Vancouver, San Jose, NYCFC. And I’m sure y’all might disagree with me.

Eyes-Watering Goal of the Season: Sebastian Blanco vs. Columbus, July 15 or Felipe Mora vs. San Jose, July 22

*skip to 5:25*

*skip to 5:04*

Once again, I can’t choose. Blanco’s was a winner on the day when his best friend was getting his name in the Ring of Honor. Mora’s was his first goal back from injury. Both of these goals meant so much to these players and the fans. If I had to pick one, I’d probably go with Blanco’s goal. It’s probably the last goal he will ever score in Green-and-Gold. Two incredible moments from this season that deserve to be framed.

Those are all the awards I want to give out for the 2023 Portland Timbers. If I’ve missed something important, please let me know. I’ll be back soon with a deep dive on the coaching search, but it’s time to take a short break and let this season rest for a bit. Thank you to all readers. At the start of the season, I couldn’t imagine that I would have the opportunity to write about the team I love. I have all of you to thank for that. Thanks for your continued support. RCTID. 

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