Sebastian Giovinco Wins ESPY Award For Best 2016 MLS Player

After winning the 2015 MLS MVP, Golden Boot Winner and Newcomer of the year, Sebastian Giovinco can now add an ESPY to his growing trophy case. Tonight, Giovinco was named the ESPY winner for best MLS Player of 2016.

Giovinco beat out fellow nominees Kei Kamara of the New England Revolution (formerly Columbus Crew), Laurent Ciman of the Montreal Impact and Luis Robles of the New York Red Bulls. The ESPY awards are decided partially by online voting, and it is no surprise that Toronto FC fans got behind the Atomic Ant.

The ESPY awards are an annual gala presenting accolades for outstanding athletic achievement. They are likely the biggest multi-sport awards handed out annually, and therefore it is a big deal for Toronto FC to be involved in some capacity. This year's awards were hosted by WWE star John Cena.

It was not surprising the Giovinco won the award. Since joining Toronto FC, Giovinco has scored 30 goals and 23 assists in just 50 MLS matches, breaking all sorts of records in the process. Those records have both been league wide, and within the club, as he is Toronto FC's leading all-time goalscorer after just one and a half seasons.

On a club level, he was integral in Toronto FC making the first playoff appearance in club history. He also recently contributed to TFC winning their fifth Canadian Championship, scoring a goal in the final.

With Giovinco missing tonight's match, there was some speculation that he had been allowed to attend the awards, setting off momentary outrage. However, the club quickly confirmed that he was in fact resting from action, and will rejoin the team on Saturday when they take on the San Jose Earthquakes in San Jose.