Each of the last two weeks, LWOS Baseball has held a vote for each of the three major MLB awards. The results of the MVP vote can be found here. The Cy Young vote results are here. This week, we’re releasing the results of our Rookie of the Year vote.
Voting was done in the style of the BBWAA Cy Young vote, where each eligible participant submits a top five for each league. Seven points are awarded for a first place vote, four for a second, three for a third, two for a fourth and one for a fifth.
The results are in, as LWOS has voted the AL’s Jose Abreu and the NL’s Jacob deGrom for our Rookies of the Year. Abreu won the AL vote unanimously, while deGrom received five of a possible seven first place votes. Both players have overcome injuries, with Abreu losing two weeks to an ankle injury in May and deGrom two weeks in August with shoulder soreness.
Since returning from his injury on June 1st, Abreu has hit .349/.419/.586. On the season, his .589 slugging percentage, .974 OPS and 172 OPS+ all lead the league, and his 35 home runs and 105 RBI are both good for third. As a 27-year-old Cuban defector entering his first stateside season, expectations for Abreu were widely varied. he was an absolutely monster in Cuba, but many predicted that while his power would certainly translate, his lack of plate discipline would harm his average. That appeared true prior to his injury, as he was hitting just .260 (with tremendous power) at the time. Since, however, he is seeing the ball better and spraying hits all over the field, establishing himself as one of the AL’s best hitters.
For deGrom, a 26-year-old without much of a minor league pedigree, a mid-May call up seemed like a move made more out of necessity than utility. In four May starts, he posted a 2.42 ERA with 25 Ks in 26 innings. Dismissed as merely an average player having a good month, deGrom scuffled in his next three starts. Since then, he has only given up more than three runs once. Overall, he pitched 140.1 innings over 22 starts with a 2.63 ERA and 144 strikeouts, ace-level production from a player considered replacement-level entering the season.
With a perfect 49 points, Abreu stands head-and-shoulders above his AL competitors. In second place was the Royals Yordano Ventura, with 19 points. A 23-year-old fireballer, Ventura won a spot in the rotation out of spring trainin and has played a huge role in the Royals contention, going 13-10 with a 3.19 ERA in 172 innings. His 7.7 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 could both use improvement, but overall he has more than exceeded expectations.
Tied for third place was the Astros Collin McHugh and the Yankees Masahiro Tanaka. McHugh, a non-prospect much like deGrom, has been a revelation for the Astros, posting a 2.73 ERA and striking out 157 batters in 154.1 innings, with an astonishing 6.8 H/9. Tanaka, who missed almost all of the second half of the season to an elbow injury, was the favorite for this award at the All-Star break. Overall, he has gone 13-4 with a 2.47 ERA and 139 strikeouts in 134.2 innings. He has also allowed just 1.3 BB/9, en route to a stellar 7.32 K/BB.
In keeping with the theme, our fifth place finisher was the Angels Matt Shoemaker. Also a complete non-prospect, Shoemaker was moved to the Angels depleted rotation and hasn’t looked back, going 16-4 with a 3.04 ERA and striking out five batters for every walk.
The NL vote was much closer, with deGrom’s 39 points edging out Billy Hamilton’s 33. Hamilton received the remaining two first place votes and was the only NL player to appear on every ballot. While he played stellar defense in centrefield and stole 56 bases, Hamilton’s ugly .253/.295/.358 batting line and league-leading 23 times caught stealing have done their part in the Reds offensive collapse. With a dramatic improvement in his discipline, at the plate and on the bases, Hamilton won’t be able to survive in the big leagues.
In third was the Cardinals Kolten Wong (14 points), with numbers quite similar to Hamilton’s. Wong’s .244/.298/.400 slash line leaves much to be desired, but is in fact barely below league average for a second baseman. Throw in good defense and 20 steals in 24 attempts, and he has been a useful player for the Cardinals. Still, a sub-.300 OBP is unacceptable for a team in the thick of contention like St. Louis, so Wong will need to improve in hitting for contact, patience, or both.
In fourth was the Giants second baseman Joe Panik (8 points). Panik has hit .298/.340/.368 in 67 games since his mid-June call up. The Diamondbacks Chris Owings and David Peralta tied for fifth with five points each.
No other players in the NL appeared on more than one ballot while in the AL the Red Sox Brock Holt, the Yankees Dellin Betances and the Rays Jake Odorizzi each appeared on two.
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Main Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
