Category: MLB

As we awake today, we now three weeks remaining with a Major League Collective Bargaining Agreement in place, 21 days before we are faced with the inevitable owner-imposed lockout. As we inch toward the winter, we do have a few things to keep us occupied this week, as Cy Young winners will be announced tomorrow night, which will presumably act as a coronation for Cam Schlittler, before we get to the MVP winners on Wednesday night. It is odd not to have a Yankee in the running for AL MVP these days.

On the site today, Josh discusses the possibility of David Bednar accepting the qualifying offer, and how it would fit with the Yankees’ general approach to roster construction, while a longer-term deal for Bednar could conflict with the team’s plans. Matt will also grade Camilo Doval’s 2026 season (it wasn’t great!), and Kevin writes up Jack Clark, a long lost member of the late-80’s Yankees.

Questions/Prompts:

1. Do you think any of the eight players that received qualifying offers will accept them? Do you think Jazz Chisholm Jr. would’ve accepted if the Yankees had offered him one?

2. Do you think the Yankees’ biggest offseason acquisition will come via free agency or trade this winter?

Major League Baseball’s general managers meetings are an important event on the offseason calendar every year. But the impending lockout puts extra emphasis this year on the three days baseball’s operations leaders will spend in Las Vegas this week.

GM meetings are generally the precursor to the more widely-attended winter meetings in December, but this year’s winter meetings are expected to be canceled in the face of a lockout. And if anxiety over a possible salary cap doesn’t put the free agent and trade markets on ice, the expiration of the current collective bargaining agreement on Dec. 1 could spur early action.

The Dodgers are poised to make news one way or another, with an opening on the coaching staff to fill, a finalist for a major award, and the belle of the 2026-27 free agent class testing the market.

Here are four story lines to follow as GM meetings get underway:

Read more:'Things run their course.' Dodgers and hitting coach Aaron Bates part ways

The search for a hitting coach

The Dodgers parted ways with co-hitting coach Aaron Bates last week. So, expect president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and general manager Brandon Gomes to field questions about their plans to fill the position, from qualities they’re seeking in a replacement to a timeline for the hire or promotion.

The rest of manager Dave Roberts’ coaching staff, including co-hitting coach Robert Van Scoyoc are expected to return.

Tarik Skubal’s free agency

Tarik Skubal, whom the Dodgers acquired from the Tigers at the trade deadline this year, is the top free agent in a fraught offseason and will be a fascinating litmus test for the market.

The last time MLB was counting down to a lockout, Corey Seager, Marcus Semien and Javy Báez all signed nine-figure contracts before it went into effect at the end of the day on Dec. 1. Like Seager and Semien, Skubal is represented by agent Scott Boras.

Whether the Dodgers will make an early aggressive play to bring back the two-time Cy Young winner remains to be seen.

“I can’t say enough good things about the impact that he made in such a short period of time,” Friedman said in his end of season news conference last month. “We have a tremendous amount of respect for him on and off the field, and for us, he’s put himself in this position to go out and be a free agent. And for us, it’s, continue to talk to Scott. But he and his family have to make a choice over where they want to spend the next X number of years, and obviously we wish him nothing but the best.”

Comparison to 2021

Just how similar will this November be to 2021, when teams committed $1.9 billion to free agents before the lockout? The short answer is: it’s hard to say with any certainty.

“I never have any feel for how a market’s going to play out,” Friedman said. “We’ve kidded ourselves in the past that, like, ‘Hey, we think this is going to happen,’ and it just takes on its own life form. So for us, it’s just about being as prepared as we possibly can be, and pouncing on opportunities.”

Though the expectation of a lockout remains the same, the owners and players are fighting over a potential overhaul of the system this time around. MLB’s push for a salary cap in their early proposals — even though their latest pushed back implementation to 2028 — could affect teams’ behavior.

Read more:Shaikin: Mark Walter says he won’t sell the Dodgers, but his plans keep changing

Most Valuable Player race

It’s baseball awards season, with the Baseball Writers’ Assn. of America announcing award winners for four straight days.

Detroit Tigers infielder Kevin McGonigle was named the American League rookie of the year and Cincinnati Reds first baseman Sal Stewart was honored as the National League rookie of the year on Monday.

Manager of the year awards will be revealed Tuesday, Cy Young and reliever of the year on Wednesday, and finally MVP on Thursday.

Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani is a finalist for National League MVP. But Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong is the favorite to win it, which would end Ohtani’s three-year MVP streak. Ohtani has won four MVP awards in all, two in the AL and two in the NL.

On Wednesday, MLB will also hold its own awards show, announcing All-MLB teams, and awards such as the Hank Aaron Award, the comeback players of the year, the Mariano Rivera & Trevor Hoffman Relievers of the Year, the Edgar Martinez Outstanding Designated Hitter of the Year and the MLB executive of the year.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are spending this offseason trying to figure out how to take that next step as a team.

The Pirates are coming off of their first winning season since 2018, so momentum is building, but they are still far from where they need to be. MLB.com contributor Will Leitch conducted recent power rankings where the Pirates were right in the middle at No. 15.

“Pirates fans were disappointed with this season, but it was still a team that had a winning record, with an offense that exceeded most expectations. If the lineup can thrive again, you should probably expect that rotation, most of all Paul Skenes, to be much better in 2027 — and it wasn’t that bad in the first place,” Leitch wrote.

The only National League teams that ranked ahead of the Pirates were the Arizona Diamondbacks, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers.

It appears that there are two full tiers of teams that rank ahead of the Pirates. For them to move into that Rachelon, one of two things will have to happen: they will need to considerably upgrade the roster through free agency, or they will need to count on their top prospects to continue growing. In an ideal situation, both of these things happen, which will give the Pirates a chance to enter the playoff conversation for the first time in a decade.

BD community, where do you think the Pirates rank in terms of the rest of the league? Let us know in the comments section below.

ESPN | Bradford Doolittle: It’s awards week! For Yankees fans, Wednesday is the night to pay attention as that’s when the AL and NY Cy Young Award winners will be announced. There shouldn’t really be much suspense for the Cy Young recipient in the American League. This should be Cam Schlittler’s hardware to take home. Doolittle agrees as he predicts who will win each award this week. “When you look at the progression of the AXE leaderboard, it was pretty much a wire-to-wire win for Schlittler, and I suspect he’ll be a near-unanimous choice when the AL Cy Young is announced.” You love to hear it.

MLB.com | Max Ralph: Closer David Bednar is a free agent. I suspect the club’s (and the fans’) prefered course of action is to re-sign Bednar and hand him the keys to the ninth inning again. But in the event that falls through, the Yankees will have to look elsewhere for a closer in 2027. For a look at free agent, trade, and in-house options, peruse Ralph’s article. Seriously though. Just bring back Bednar.

MLB.com: MLB.com took us around the hot stove Monday, looking at the latest rumors. For the Yankees, it’s that the club plans to upgrade third base. Pulling from Jon Heyman’s reporting for the New York Post, MLB notes that third base and the bullpen sit atop the Yanks’ needs as we head into a three-week offseason stretch before Major League Baseball inevitably locks the players out. I think it’s probably fair to say everyone was expecting third base to sit atop the Yankees’ pyramid of needs.

It’s the start of another week here at BCB After Dark: the coolest club for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in out of the fall chill. We’ve been expecting you. There’s no cover charge. The dress code is casual. We still have a few tables available. Bring your own beverage.

BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.

Last week, I asked you which 2026 Cub free agent would you most want the Cubs to re-sign and bring back? With 36 percent of the vote, you want to see catcher Carson Kelly be a Cub in 2027. It was a close vote, as 35 percent of you would like Clay Holmes to return.

Here’s the part with the music and the movies. You’re welcome to join us. It should be a good time.

Tonight we have a piece of classic jazz from the Ed Sullivan Show in 1967. This is Tony Bennett with Count Basie and his Orchestra playing the Duke Ellington tune “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore.”

I’ve got a holdover Halloween movie with the 1992 film Highway to Hell, directed by Ate de Jong and starring Patrick Bergin, Chad Lowe and Kristy Swanson. This film gave me a lot of video store “Direct-to-video” vibes, although I guess it did get a token theatrical release before going almost direct-to-video. I’ve read online that it’s become a cult classic over the years and it is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel, so some people think it’s a worthwhile project. For me, it was very reminiscent of the film that you checked out of your local video store because you got there at 8 pm on a Saturday night and everything else was gone. You’re expecting it to be really bad and after you watch it, you’re like “Hey! That’s a lot better than I expected.” Not that it’s really good, but it was at least good enough that you’re not embarrassed that you rented it. And if you’re really a fan of those direct-to-video B-movies, then you probably told your friends about it.

First off, Highway to Hell is based on the myth of Orpheus, so there’s at least a little ambition there. Charlie Sykes (Chad Lowe—Rob’s brother) and Rachel Clark (Swanson) are young lovers running off to Las Vegas to elope against her parents’ wishes. Rachel is underage and still a virgin, so that probably plays some role in their objections.

Convinced that Rachel’s parents have hired someone to follow them, Charlie takes a dark backroad to Vegas. He gets a bit lost, so he stops for gas and directions at Sam’s (Richard Farnsworth) gas station. He tells them to get back on the interstate but if they insist upon going on, don’t stop between the two Joshua trees. Of course, Charlie ignores him, falls asleep and goes off the road between the two Joshua trees. The two encounter Hellcop (C.J. Graham) who immediately grabs Rachel and disappears with her.

Charlie returns to Sam who tells him that the Devil abducts young virgins on that road, taking them down to Hell to serve him. It happened to him fifty years ago when his young fiancée Clara (Pamela Gidley) was carried to the underworld. (When Charlie asks why he didn’t say this in the first place, Sam says he never would have believed him) Charlie is determined to go down to Hell and retrieve Rachel, so Sam gives Charlie a special shotgun with demon-splashing shells and his old souped-up thirties-era car. Charlie goes into the underworld where he needs to fight off countless demons and navigate the politics of Hell to bring Rachel back to the world of the living.

There are a lot of cameos along the way. The entire Stiller family is here—Jerry Stiller, Anne Meara and their children Ben and Amy Stiller all have minor roles as mythological or just the damned in Hell. Singer Lita Ford appears as a hitchhiker. Gilbert Gottfried plays Hitler in Hell, which, is pretty much what it sounds like. Gottfried doing his schtick dressed up as Hitler. Hell also has “reserved” table for four still-living people in 1992, including one very surprising choice. So as you can tell, this is a film that wisely isn’t taking itself seriously.

Obviously this is a low-budget affair with a lot of silly stuff going on. The scares are pretty rare as the film almost always goes for ridiculous over frightening. The demon makeup is pretty standard stuff for an early-nineties direct-to-video film. Most of the film was shot in the desert areas of Arizona and Utah.

It’s hard to say a lot about Highway to Hell other than watching it in 2026 gave me real nineties video store flashbacks. This is probably one of the better titles that is more concerned with the title and box illustrations to catch a browser’s eye more than what’s actually on the videocassette. It’s to the credit of director de Jong and the cast that they didn’t just phone the whole film in. Despite it’s Greek myth setup, it’s not meant to be any sort of classic. But everyone does just enough to keep the popcorn flowing on a Saturday night in someone’s basement den.

Here’s the trailer for Highway to Hell. No, the AC/DC song is not in the movie. I’m sure they’d have loved to have had it but it was likely too expensive. The film does have some Tangerine Dream electronic music for the musical score.

Welcome back to everyone who skips the music and movies.

I’ve been talking a lot about free agent left-hander reliever Adrián Morejón in this space lately, despite the fact that all of the articles linking him to the Cubs are speculation and not based on inside information, as far as I know.

But we need something to talk about and there’s no doubt that the Cubs would like Morejón at the right price. Over the past three seasons, Morejón has been healthy, averaging just over 70 innings a year. In those 223.1 innings, Morejón has struck out 248 batters and posted a 2.58 ERA. He’s only allowed ten home runs over three years and issued just 66 walks.

If the Cubs are going to sign Morejón, they’ll have to give him a lot more money than they’ve traditionally been comfortable giving a relief pitcher. Kiley McDaniel estimates that Morejón will accept an offer of four years and $88 million and Tim Britton goes nuts with a five-year, $110 million offer.

I have trouble seeing Morejón getting over $100 million, with McDaniels’ estimate more in line for a top-flight reliever who is still young at 27. But, there’s another factor that Britton brings up and I’ve seen other people bring up in connection to the Cubs. What if Morejón converts to starting?

It’s not an outlandish idea. Morejón was a top starting pitching prospect when he signed with the Padres after leaving Cuba. He started throughout the minors and even started a bit with the Padres until he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2021. Since he’s returned from that, he’s pitched out of the bullpen and has been dominating. But several reports state that he still wants to start.

That’s where the Cubs come in. The Cubs could certainly use Morejón out of the bullpen, but the starting rotation is a bigger issue of concern for the Cubs this offseason. Beyond money, the Cubs could offer Morejón a chance to start. As a reliever, Britton’s contract estimate for Morejón looks too rich for the Cubs’ (and most other teams’) blood. But as a starter who doesn’t turn 28 until February? That’s a bargain for a young top starter.

So tonight’s question is “Would you offer Adrián Morejón a chance to start to sign with the Cubs?” Obviously if he couldn’t hack it, he could move back to the bullpen as what we hope would be an effective, if overpaid, reliever. But the Cubs would have to give it some time to succeed. You couldn’t promise Morejón a chance to start and then pull the plug after six-to-eight starts. If the Cubs did that, no free agent would ever trust this front office again. You’d have to at least give him a year, unless he decided to move back to the bullpen on his own earlier.

There have been some notable successes in turning relievers to starters lately. Clay Holmes was a top-ten closer before the Mets decided to make a starting pitcher out of him. The White Sox successfully moved Garrett Crochet from the bullpen to the starting rotation. Tampa Bay moved Griffin Jax from the pen to the rotation last year with some success as well.

Morejón certainly has the stuff to start and he started in the minor leagues and early in his major league career. However, he also has never thrown more than the 86 innings in one season that he did in 2026. So it’s not like he has a long tradition of being able to stand up to the physical demands of being a starter. And in case you’ve forgotten, the Padres moved Morejón to the bullpen because he got injured as a starter and had to have Tommy John surgery. So there’s no doubt that there is a lot of injury risk in such a move.

So what would you do? Would you sign Adrián Morejón as a starting pitcher?

Thank you for stopping by tonight. We’re always happy to have a friendly face around. Please get home safely. Call a ride if you need one. Recycle any cans and bottles. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again tomorrow night for more BCB After Dark.

There was a time and place when swatting 32 homers and driving in 112 runs during one’s rookie year would have made one an absolute lock to take home Rookie of the Year honors. In calendar year 2026, though, there are a whole lot more factors that go into the decision making process among voters to determine which rookies were the most valuable during their respective first full seasons.

Sal Stewart of the Cincinnati Reds put up those marks in a monster campaign this past season, and though he was named a finalist for the National League Rookie of the Year Award last week for his accomplishments there were another pair of finalists that were every bit as deserving in their own ways.

On Sunday night, though, the voting revealed it was Sal who’d taken home the award, besting both JJ Wetherholt of the St. Louis Cardinals and Carson Benge of the New York Mets.

Sal’s counting stats were impossible to ignore for voters despite Wetherholt having put up a 4 WAR season on the back of excellent defense at shortstop and Benge having put together a 4 WAR season of his own on the back of a 20 homer, 20 steal season.

Despite advanced metrics clearly giving the all-around advantage to the non-Red in the equation, Sal actually ran away with the voting with Benge finishing 2nd and Wetherholt a close 3rd.

Stewart’s win earned the Reds a Prospect Promotion Initiative (PPI) pick in next summer’s draft with his win, as well as the overall bonus pool bump that will come with an additional pick at the end of the 1st round. Sal also became the first Red to take home Rookie of the Year honors since Jonathan India back in 2021.

Congrats to Sal on a wonderful RoY campaign.

LAS VEGAS — Carson Benge’s impressive debut season ranked among the best in Mets history but left him short of MLB’s top rookie prize. 

Sal Stewart was named National League Rookie of the Year on Monday by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, with Benge second in the voting, ahead of JJ Wetherholt. Benge’s Mets teammate, Nolan McLean — who wasn’t named among the finalists last week — finished fourth in the voting. 

Stewart received 20 of the first-place votes. Benge received seven first-place votes and Wetherholt got three. 

Benge, 23, thrust himself into contention for the award with a strong August and September, but ultimately couldn’t overcome Stewart’s offensive production. Stewart, the Reds first baseman, posted a .263/.330/.457 slash line with 32 homers and 112 RBIs. 

Benge’s candidacy hinged largely on his 20-20 season (homers and stolen bases) along with his outfield defense. Most notably, Benge led NL right fielders with 10 assists. 

His arm was on full display in August when he threw out two runners at the plate in the same inning. 

Overall, Benge produced a .282/.346/.430 slash line with 20 homers, 65 RBIs and 22 stolen bases. 

“I think I deserve it,” Benge told The Post in late September, when asked about the NL Rookie of the Year award. “I think I showed in the whole season, doing all facets of the game that I did a pretty good job of showcasing my talent.” 

Benge had a .498 OPS on May 2 before beginning his offensive surge. He posted an .878 OPS over the season’s final two months. 

“Going into [the season] I really had no clue what to expect,” Benge said on MLB Network. “I knew that anyone I was going to be playing against was a lot better than anything I have ever been a part of before, but I always had that confidence in myself and knowing and staying true to myself that I can hang with just about anyone is a big part of my game.” 

Tom Seaver, Jon Matlack, Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden, Jacob deGrom and Pete Alonso are the Mets players who have won NL Rookie of the Year. 

Tigers infielder Kevin McGonigle won the award in the AL after a stellar all-around season that sets him up to be a franchise cornerstone for the next decade. 

McGonigle received 28 of 30 first-place votes. 

— With AP 

A pretty straightforward headline, but I was curious to see how many votes Bryce Eldridge would actually receive after the announcement that he wasn’t a finalist. It turns out he received two (2) of the thirty (30) votes and both were for 5th place — not enough to land him that spot. The top 5 vote-getters:

1. Sal Stewart, Reds — 170 points
2. Carson Benge, Mets — 107
3. JJ Wetherholt, Cards — 99
4. Nolan McLean, Mets — 70
5. TJ Rumfield, Rockies – 49

And he actually had fewer votes than #6 on the list, Logan Henderson. He tied with Atlanta pitcher Didier Fuentes, and both had one more vote than another Mets rookie: outfielder A.J. Ewing.

Now, if you want to know why Stewart got it, the answer is simple: 32 home runs and 112 RBI. Otherwise, his 112 wRC+ was just 6th. Eldridge led the NL rookie pack at 131. By fWAR, his 1.8 was outside the top 6th, but Stewart’s was just 2.0 thanks to -8.8 Defensive Runs Above Average. What could have been, had Eldridge’s season not been cut short by a doorway… right?

By straight WAR, the vote would’ve gone Wetherholt (4.6), Benge (4.3), Rumfield (2.6), Miami’s Joe Mack (2.2), and the Stewart. Benge had 20 homers, trailing Stewart by a wide margin, but what if Eldridge had avoided that doorway and gotten to 20 or 21 himself? It might’ve been an interesting discussion.

As it stands, Eno Sarris’s bet has paid off in year one.

Cincinnati will receive the Prospect Promotion Incentive (PPI) draft pick because they put Stewart on their Opening Day roster. The Giants didn’t want to do that, but as the #4 most important story of the season, there’s a certain what could’ve been quality to his season. The kid showed he could hang in the big leagues and adjust back against the league’s adjustments to him. This happened to one of the other finalists.

Carson Benge was hitting .204 through his first 36 games but then .301/.362/.454 (.817 OPS) over the rest of the season with 17 homers and 54 RBI, along with superlative defense. Eldridge was down to .248/.342/.426 (.768) after 76 games, but in his final 31 (138 PA) he slashed .319/.413/.543 (.956 OPS) with 6 homers and 29 RBI. Wetherhold faded down the stretch (along with missing time due to injury) and hit .213/.310/.276 over his final 34 games (145 PA). Sal Stewart hovered around a .720 OPS over the final weeks of the season but, rather crucially, he played in all 162 games. But, to be clear, and to take off the fan hat: this is some serious competition. This was a very tough field. Eldridge would’ve had to get much closer to those counting stats to make up for the lack of defensive pizzaz and to overcome the games played disparity with Stewart.

It’s not the ideal outcome for such a promising season, but this has the chance to be a quaint footnote in his professional story. He made a big impression at age 21 but didn’t even sniff the Rookie of the Year Award, but went on to become a perennial All-Star and a notable slugger in Giants history. I mean, that’s the hope, right?

The real shocker in this is how the Bay Area writers stayed away. Eldridge’s two votes came from David Venn of MLB.com from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America’s Arizona chapter and The Athletic’s Charlotte Varnes from the Philadelphia chapter. Eldridge didn’t even face the Phillies this season and in Arizona he hit just .286/.286/.333 in 21 PA (5 games); though, overall: .311/.367/.467 with a homer and 8 RBI in 49 PA (12 total games).

The SF chapter votes were from Jaeho Kim (MK Sports) and Shayna Rubin (The Chronicle). Rubin’s 5 were the top 5 (slight difference in order) and Kim’s ballot omitted Benge in favor of Didier Fuentes.

Payton Tolle was not named the American League Rookie of the Year for 2026 tonight. This was expected.

Tolle was great, of course. He was the first Red Sox pitcher under the age of 24 since Dennis Eckersley to make at least 4 starts of at least 6 innings without allowing a single run. He was also the only rookie in baseball history to post a strikeout rate above 28% and a walk rate below 7% while throwing at least 140 innings. And while both of those stats are a little too niche to be taken seriously by most people who would read them, they both point to an undeniable truth: Payton Tolle is really young and really good.

Unfortunately for him, Kevin McGonigle is also really young and really good. He’s even younger than Tolle, in fact, and yet he led the entire American League in bWAR, his 7.1 besting Yordan Alvarez and Bobby Witt, Jr. to round out the top-three. When a rookie is arguably the most valuable player in the entire league, the Rookie of the Year voting is reduced to a mere formality. McGonigle ran roughshod over the league and was justly rewarded.

But let the record show: the Red Sox tried their damndest to get Tolle the award, by which I mean the Red Sox pitching staff completely dominated McGonigle this year. In 5 games against the Sox, McGonigle slashed just .238/.273/.286. That was the third-lowest OPS he put up against any team. Moreover, McGonigle ducked when he had a chance to do damage against Tolle himself, sitting out the first game of an early May series when Tolle was on the bump. Was he merely being platooned against a tough lefty, as left-handed rookies often are, or is he a coward?!?!

Probably the former, but hopefully we get a chance to see a Tolle-McGonigle matchup at some point next season.

In 2024, when Paul Skenes won National League Rookie of the Year, Jackson Chourio finished as one of the NL’s three finalists. In 2025, Caleb Durbin made it back-to-back years with a Brewers finalist as Drake Baldwin took home the award.

This year, despite a trio of talented rookies in Logan Henderson, Cooper Pratt, and Luis Lara, all of whom contributed to the Brewers’ title run, Milwaukee was shut out. The finalists in the National League were Cardinals second baseman J.J. Wetherholt, Mets right fielder Carson Benge, and the winner: first baseman Sal Stewart of the Reds.

Henderson did pick up some down-ballot votes, receiving one second-place vote, one third-place vote, and three fifth-place votes. The right-hander put up 3.3 bWAR (1.3 more than Stewart) and went the whole regular season without allowing more than three runs in a start.

Stewart, who received 20 first-place votes and 170 total points, is an old-school pick whose power is his calling card; despite posting just 2.0 bWAR, he finished eighth in the NL with 32 home runs and second with 112 RBIs.

Finishing in second place with 107 points was Benge, who doesn’t lead the way in any one statistical category: he’s just good at everything. He’s an above-average hitter (118 OPS+) and an above-average defender (+1 DRS), he posted a 20/20 season, and he got better as the year went on. Benge’s standout tool is his arm; he finished the season with 10 outfield assists, including one on August 17 that was thrown at 103.9 mph.

Wetherholt, who finished third with 99 points, is already one of the best defensive players in the league; he led all NL rookies with 4.6 bWAR despite hitting at a roughly league-average level (.704 OPS, 102 OPS+). His +25 outs above average and +23 fielding run value both ranked second in the majors, behind only Pete Crow-Armstrong.

In the AL, Kevin McGonigle ran away with the award, receiving 28 of 30 first-place votes. In his first season as a big-leaguer, McGonigle led the entire American League with 7.1 bWAR, a ridiculous number that shows just how bright his future is.

Full voting results are available from the BBWAA for the NL and the AL.

Awards Season is officially in full swing now, as the BBWAA will be announcing the winners of their annual awards throughout the week. As usual, the ceremonies got started off with the BBWAA Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year Awards and the flavor of this year’s edition was Central Divison-centric.

Indeed, Kevin McGonigle of the Detroit Tigers and Sal Stewart of the Cincinnati Reds ended up taking home the hardware for the AL And NL Rookie of the Year Awards, respectively.

When it comes to the AL race, it was really no contest as McGonigle finished with 28 of the possible 30 first place votes on his way to becoming the sixth Rookie of the Year Award for Detroit winner — their first winner since 2016 which is when Michael Fullmer took home the honors. McGonigle finished the year with a slash line of .278/.376/.430 with a .357 wOBA, 129 wRC+ and 18 home runs while splitting time equally between shortstop and third base. McGonigle finished the season as the rookie leader in fWAR at 5.4, so it’s not particularly shocking that he took home the honors.

The NL Race wasn’t much closer, as Sal Stewart ended up taking home the honors in comfortable fashion as he received 20 of the 30 possible first place votes. Stewart’s award now makes it nine times that Reds players have won this award now, with the most recent winner before Sal being Jonathan India back in 2021. Stewart finished his year with a .263/.330/.457 line along with a .339 wOBA, 112 wRC+ and 32 dingers on the year. Stewart led all NL rookies in homers, but I will say that it’s kind of shocking that JJ Wetherholt not only didn’t win it but he also finished third behind Carson Benge as well.

With all of that being said, our very own Didier Fuentes did receive some consideration for this award. Atlanta’s top reliever (according to Walt Weiss, himself) earned two fifth-place votes in order to come in eighth-place overall in the NL Rookie of the Year voting, so it’s at least nice to see that Fuentes’s efforts on the mound this season (58 appearances, 73.1 innings pitched, 2.45 ERA (58 ERA-), 2.60 FIP (62 FIP-) didn’t go completely ignored.

BBWAA Awards Week will continue tomorrow night, as we’ll find out if Walt Weiss did enough to earn the honors of being NL Manager of the Year. We’ll see what happens then./f

Sal Stewart never took a day off this season. He played all 162 games for the Cincinnati Reds, hit 32 homers and drove in 112 runs. No Reds rookie had ever driven in more.

Monday, it made him the National League Rookie of the Year.

"Man, relieved," Stewart said on MLB Network after winning the award. "I told myself I knew this award was going to find me, because that's how I was raised. I worked hard and I did what I could.

"I'm a kid from Miami. I worked hard for this moment. A lot of people doubted me."

The 22-year-old first baseman received 20 of 30 first-place votes and 170 points from the Baseball Writers' Association of America. New York Mets outfielder Carson Benge was second with seven first-place votes and St. Louis Cardinals second baseman JJ Wetherholt was third with three.

Stewart is the ninth Reds player to win the award. Jonathan India was the last in 2021.

Cincinnati gets a draft pick out of it. MLB's Prospect Promotion Incentive rewards teams that give top prospects a full rookie season in the majors, and the NL winner earns his club an extra pick after the first round of the 2027 draft.

Stewart spent most of the summer as the best run producer in the sport. On Aug. 26, he became the first player in the majors to reach 100 RBIs. He finished third in baseball, behind Alec Burleson's 116 and Pete Alonso's 113.

How Sal Stewart won NL Rookie of the Year

By the end of April, Stewart had nine homers and 29 RBIs, was hitting .281 and had gone 7-for-7 stealing bases.

May and June were harder. He hit under .250 in both months.

He fixed it in July and was named an All-Star. In August, he won NL Rookie of the Month for the second time, the first Reds player to win it twice in one season.

The Reds kept finding spots to keep his bat and speed in the lineup. Stewart appeared in 117 games at first base, 45 at third, 11 as the designated hitter and eight at second base.

Sal Stewart stats and Reds rookie records

Jim Greengrass drove in 100 runs as a Reds rookie in 1953. His record held up for 73 years.

Stewart beat it by 12.

Frank Robinson hit 38 homers as a rookie in 1956. Until this year, he was the only Reds rookie with 30. Stewart is the first to do it with 100 RBIs. His 20 homers before the All-Star break were another franchise record.

He finished with 164 hits, tied for second in the NL, the most by a Reds rookie since Pete Rose had 170 in 1963. He led all NL rookies in homers, RBIs, extra-base hits (57) and total bases (285).

No Reds rookie had played every game since the NL moved to a 162-game schedule.

Only one other rookie has put up 30 homers, 100 RBIs and 15 steals in a season: Jose Canseco in 1986.

Reds Rookie of the Year winners

• Frank Robinson, outfielder, 1956
• Pete Rose, second baseman, 1963
• Tommy Helms, third baseman, 1966
• Johnny Bench, catcher, 1968
• Pat Zachry, pitcher, 1976 (shared with San Diego's Butch Metzger)
• Chris Sabo, third baseman, 1988
• Scott Williamson, pitcher, 1999
• Johnathan India, second baseman, 2021
• Sal Stewart, first baseman, 2026

Why Sal Stewart beat Carson Benge for NL Rookie of the Year

Not everyone thought Stewart was the best rookie in the league.

Stewart had the power numbers. Benge and Wetherholt had the better all-around seasons.

Benge hit .282 with 20 homers, 65 RBIs and 22 steals for the Mets. He was the better hitter for average, the faster runner and better fielder.

Wetherholt, the Cardinals' second baseman, didn't come close to Stewart at the plate. He hit .242 with 17 homers. But he was a Gold Glove finalist and one of the best defenders in the league.

That's why both rated well ahead of Stewart in WAR. FanGraphs had Benge at 4.3 and Stewart at 1.9. Baseball Reference had Wetherholt at 4.5 and Stewart at 1.8. Stewart's defense at first and third base cost him.

So did September.

Stewart hit .247 over his final 24 games, with one extra-base hit and six RBIs. Alec Burleson passed him for the NL lead in RBIs in the final week.

The voters still went with the homers, the RBIs and the 162 games.

NL Rookie of the Year winners, past 10 years

Asterisks denote a unanimous vote

• 2025: Drake Baldwin, catcher, Atlanta Braves
• 2024: Paul Skenes, pitcher, Pittsburgh Pirates
• 2023: Corbin Carroll, outfielder, Diamondbacks*
• 2022: Michael Harris II, outfielder, Atlanta Braves
• 2021: Jonathan India, second baseman, Cincinnati Reds
• 2020: Devin Williams, pitcher, Milwaukee Brewers
• 2019: Pete Alonso, first baseman, New York Mets
• 2018: Ronald Acuna Jr., outfielder, Atlanta Braves
• 2017: Cody Bellinger, first baseman, Los Angles Dodgers*
• 2016: Corey Seager, shortstop, Los Angeles Dodgers*

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Reds' Sal Stewart wins NL Rookie of the Year after 112 RBI season

Welcome to our series grading every member of the San Diego Padres’ 40-man roster. The roster being evaluated is current as of Oct. 18, prior to the end of the World Series. Because of that, it will include players who will be free agents once the postseason concludes. Each player will be graded on their performance in the 2026 season, including the playoffs. That performance will be weighted based on how much time the player spent with the team (availability is the best ability). 

Jackson Merrill

When Jackson Merrill trotted out to center field on Opening Day of the 2024 season, he had played just six games at the position. Merrill was drafted by San Diego as a lifetime shortstop, but transitioned to center field and flourished. In his rookie year, Merrill finished runner-up in NL Rookie of the Year voting behind Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes. He had a bit of a slump in his sophomore season, being held back by injury.

Overall Grade: B

However, 2026 was a return to form. Merrill recorded the first 20/20 season of his young career, finishing the year with a career-high 26 homers and 27 stolen bases. If not for a slightly unproductive first half of the season, Merrill might have recorded the first 30/30 season in Padres’ franchise history. Along with Fernando Tatis Jr., Merrill buoyed the Padres’ second-half surge.

Merrill’s overall metrics have consistently declined since his rookie year. The center fielder’s batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS have all decreased each year. Still, 2026 was his most productive season yet with a career-high in combination of runs scored and runs batted in (173).

There’s a lot to suggest that Merrill was unlucky. His .270 expected batting average was 26 points higher than his actual mark (.254) while his .491 xSLG was 51 points above his actual (.440). Much of that may have to do with Merrill’s unbelievably high strikeout rates (career-high 160 strikeouts). If he can mitigate the Ks in 2027, Merrill could be phenomenal leader in the San Diego clubhouse this coming season.

The results are in for Rookie of the Year from Major League Baseball and Sal Stewart of the Cincinnati Reds was announced as the winner. The other finalist along with JJ Wetherholt of the Cardinals was Carson Benge of the New York Mets.

JJ was hoping to be the first St. Louis Cardinals Rookie of the Year since Albert Pujols won the award in 2001.

Here are JJ’s numbers for the 2026 season:

Games Played – 139
Plate Appearances – 619
At Bats – 537
Runs – 89
Hits – 130
Doubles – 15
Triples – 0
Home Runs – 17
Runs Batted In (RBI) – 51
Walks – 64
Strikeouts – 104
Stolen Bases / Caught Stealing – 14 / 1
Batting Average (AVG) – .242
On-Base Percentage (OBP) – .339
Slugging Percentage (SLG) – .365
On-Base Plus Slugging (OPS) – .704