Rookie of the Year

The Fansided Rookie of the Year has been chosen, and the final numbers can be found here.

I thought Craig Kimbrel of the Atlanta Braves was the clear choice for first place. Anybody who sets rookie records should get the Rookie of the Year award, it’s that simple. Kimbrel’s 46 saves easily bested the record Neftali Feliz set in 2010 (40), on his way to winning the AL ROY. He also struck out 127 in 77 innings pitched, which doesn’t even seem possible. In the wake of Billy Wagner‘s departure, it was unclear whether the back end of the Braves’ bullpen could keep the team in the race. Kimbrel answered that question decisively.

I awarded my second place vote to Danny Espinosa of the Washington Nationals. The Braves’ Freddie Freeman got more attention, but Espinosa hit 21 home runs, something no other NL rookie can say. He also posted a 3.5 WAR, second-best among all rookies. The Nats had a tough season, but the future is bright as long as it has Espinosa in it.

My third place vote went to the Philadelphia Phillies’ Vance Worley. Only the Phillies can put a pitcher like Roy Oswalt on the disabled list and replace him with one like Worley. His 3.01 ERA and 11-3 record weren’t necessary to the Phils’ success, but they certainly didn’t do any harm. Neither did his 119 punchouts. Not that Phillies fans had anything to worry about when it came to their pitching staff. They really don’t now.