Over the next few weeks RealGMBaseball will be holding our 2014 Major League Baseball 'Be The GM' Contest to determine which player would be the best selection to build a franchise around.

The contest, which is being brought to you by the Original Retro Brand, is described and previewed here: RealGM's 2014 'Be The GM' Contest. You'll want to check out the link for rules on how to enter to win a $50 Retro Brand gift card and to see the full contest schedule.

Jason Kipnis of the Cleveland Indians and Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers are featured in Monday's matchup. Voting will extend through the end of the first round.

Kipnis is coming off a breakout season, making his first All-Star team and earning some national attention for his play at second base. He hit .284/.366/.452 with 17 home runs and 84 RBIs in 658 plate appearances. He also stole 30 bases and finished eleventh in the American League MVP voting.

He isn't hitting the ball as well to begin this season, .234/.354/.394, but is still finding ways to get on base. Through 27 games, he actually had more walks (17) than strikeouts (16).  That shows a significant improvement over his past plate discipline. He struck out nearly twice as often as he walked last season.

Defense isn't a strength for Kipnis, who had 0.4 dWAR in 2013 and is actually negative in the early going this season. However, he is so balanced offensively that he finished last year with 5.9 WAR, ninth among AL position players.

Miguel Cabrera is destined for the Hall of Fame, having logged nearly five times as many plate appearances as Kipnis in his storied career.

Over 12 seasons, Cabrera is a .320/.398/.566 hitter. He has won the last two AL MVP awards and has been named to eight All-Star teams. At just 31, Cabrera has 370 home runs and 1,288 RBIs during his time with the Florida Marlins and Detroit Tigers.

Never considered a strong defender, Cabrera has been negative in dWAR in each of his full seasons. He's at 0.2 early on in 2014, but is still about as valuable a player as you'll find in Major League Baseball. He has ranked among the top 10 players (AL) in WAR in each of the last four seasons and sits eleventh among all active players (55.6). He's also remarkably durable. He has played in at least 148 games in each of his full seasons.

Vote In This Matchup: Kipnis or Cabrera?

Previous Matchups:

May 9: Lawrie or Sale?

May 7: Tanaka or Longoria?

May 5: Machado or Bogaerts?

Next Matchup: May 14 – Salvador Perez vs. Kyle Gibson

Don’t forget to Tweet your pick along with #BeTheGM to be entered to win a $50 Retro Brand gift card.