Who Will Win Rookie of the Year in the N.L?
Posted: Fri Sep 21, 2007 12:40 am
Who will win Rookie of the Year for the N.L?
Sep 1, 2007
Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers leads this crop of excellent National League rookies who have broken out during the 2007 baseball season.
1. Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers (.332 BA, 25 HR, 68 RBI)
Braun is the clear front-runner for the National League Rookie of the Year. He leads all NL first year players in batting average, home runs, and runs batted in. He's been part of a surprise Milwaukee Brewers ball club that, although still very young, is just two games out of first place in the National League Central Division. He is clearly the frontrunner for the award, and can only lose it if he has a terrible September and one of the next four guys steps up. It could happen.
2. Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado Rockies (.292, 18 HR, 72 RBI)
Tulowitzki claims that when he was growing up, his favorite player was Derek Jeter. It's hard to believe that Jeter has been around long enough to receive that honor. But the Yankee shortstop should be proud that he inspired one of the best roookies in baseball to become a shortstop that is good enough to potentially out-do all of Jeter's 1996 Rookie of the Year numbers.
3. Hunter Pence, Houston Astros (.323 BA, 12 HR, 47 RBI)
Hunter Pence brings a whole lot of spirit, energy, and hope to a franchise that has fallen pretty far over the past two years. The 2005 National League champions are 14 games under .500 and they just canned their manager. They are also losing their team leader, Craig Biggio, who is retiring at the end of this season.
But it looks like the team might be able to rebound pretty soon because of Hunter. The kid has been a hitting machine for the Astros this year. Those numbers you see above were put up over the course of just 81 games. So double them, and it becomes clear how good Pence really may be. Once the forerunner for this award, Hunter's injuries -- and Ryan Braun's outstanding hitting -- have knocked him off the top perch.
4. Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants (7-4, 3.94 ERA, 137 Ks)
Watching Tim Lincecum pitch is a lot like seeing a medieval catapult in action. The 170-pound pitcher whips his body in such a fast, smooth -- really almost flawless-- motion, and with such precise, controlled ferocity that his fastball routinely tops 95 mph. That heater has led him to 7 wins and 4 losses, more than one strikeout per inning and a solid ERA for a rookie. Although he is a legitimate contender, Tim needs to win all of his starts down the stretch to challenge Braun.
5. Josh Hamilton, Cincinnati Reds (.285 BA, 17 HR, 41 RBI)
After one of the most famous, and infamous, minor league sagas in history, Josh Hamilton seems to have overcome his demons and is having a great rookie year, batting .285 with 17 home runs and 41 RBI in just 80 games.
This is the same guy who was the Number One Overall Pick by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 1999. He also won two separate Minor League Player of the year awards. But for the past few seasons, Josh Hamilton battled serious drug problems that forced him out of baseball altogether in February of 2004.
Tampa Bay eventually gave up on Hamilton, leaving him unprotected for the 2006 Rule 5 Draft. The Cincinnati Reds gave him one last shot when they selected him with the third overall pick, and Hamilton has responded. Still just 26 years old, Josh Hamilton should have a long, drug-free, happy career in baseball ahead of him.
Sep 1, 2007
Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers leads this crop of excellent National League rookies who have broken out during the 2007 baseball season.
1. Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers (.332 BA, 25 HR, 68 RBI)
Braun is the clear front-runner for the National League Rookie of the Year. He leads all NL first year players in batting average, home runs, and runs batted in. He's been part of a surprise Milwaukee Brewers ball club that, although still very young, is just two games out of first place in the National League Central Division. He is clearly the frontrunner for the award, and can only lose it if he has a terrible September and one of the next four guys steps up. It could happen.
2. Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado Rockies (.292, 18 HR, 72 RBI)
Tulowitzki claims that when he was growing up, his favorite player was Derek Jeter. It's hard to believe that Jeter has been around long enough to receive that honor. But the Yankee shortstop should be proud that he inspired one of the best roookies in baseball to become a shortstop that is good enough to potentially out-do all of Jeter's 1996 Rookie of the Year numbers.
3. Hunter Pence, Houston Astros (.323 BA, 12 HR, 47 RBI)
Hunter Pence brings a whole lot of spirit, energy, and hope to a franchise that has fallen pretty far over the past two years. The 2005 National League champions are 14 games under .500 and they just canned their manager. They are also losing their team leader, Craig Biggio, who is retiring at the end of this season.
But it looks like the team might be able to rebound pretty soon because of Hunter. The kid has been a hitting machine for the Astros this year. Those numbers you see above were put up over the course of just 81 games. So double them, and it becomes clear how good Pence really may be. Once the forerunner for this award, Hunter's injuries -- and Ryan Braun's outstanding hitting -- have knocked him off the top perch.
4. Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants (7-4, 3.94 ERA, 137 Ks)
Watching Tim Lincecum pitch is a lot like seeing a medieval catapult in action. The 170-pound pitcher whips his body in such a fast, smooth -- really almost flawless-- motion, and with such precise, controlled ferocity that his fastball routinely tops 95 mph. That heater has led him to 7 wins and 4 losses, more than one strikeout per inning and a solid ERA for a rookie. Although he is a legitimate contender, Tim needs to win all of his starts down the stretch to challenge Braun.
5. Josh Hamilton, Cincinnati Reds (.285 BA, 17 HR, 41 RBI)
After one of the most famous, and infamous, minor league sagas in history, Josh Hamilton seems to have overcome his demons and is having a great rookie year, batting .285 with 17 home runs and 41 RBI in just 80 games.
This is the same guy who was the Number One Overall Pick by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 1999. He also won two separate Minor League Player of the year awards. But for the past few seasons, Josh Hamilton battled serious drug problems that forced him out of baseball altogether in February of 2004.
Tampa Bay eventually gave up on Hamilton, leaving him unprotected for the 2006 Rule 5 Draft. The Cincinnati Reds gave him one last shot when they selected him with the third overall pick, and Hamilton has responded. Still just 26 years old, Josh Hamilton should have a long, drug-free, happy career in baseball ahead of him.
