I'm not saying that American Pharaoh wouldn't be a worthy recipient, but I wouldn't be optimistic about him getting it. The last three times that there was a Triple Crown winner -- all of which, in my opinion, had a better "story line" than American Pharaoh (Secretariat's overwhelming victory in the Belmont (in addition to being the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years); Seattle Slew going through the Triple Crown undefeated; and Affirmed's rivalry with Alydar) -- the winners of that year's Sportsman of the Year were Jackie Stewart, Steve Cauthen (whom I concede comes close for his incredible breakout year -- and at least represented horse racing, in addition to riding the Triple Crown winner the following year), and Jack Nicklaus.
And, speaking of Steve Cauthen's award, I can still remember the outraged letters from readers that
Sports Illustrated received (and printed), asking how in the world you could call a jockey an athlete. (Imagine what those same people might have said if the award had been given to a horse instead of a human.
)
My apologies to the connections of American Pharoah. I need to remember to (mis)spell his name correctly!
