Colorado Rockies foes: 2020 American League awards predictions

Rookie of the Year Predictions

Winner: Jesus Luzardo, P  – Oakland Athletics

2nd place: Luis Robert, OF – Chicago White Sox; 3rd place:  Evan White, 1B – Seattle Mariners

Let’s start things off with a bit of an upset. Luis Robert is one of the top prospects in the game and will start immediately for the Chicago White Sox. He has 30 home run and 30 stolen base potential, but will the White Sox let him take off after stifling Tim Anderson and Yoan Moncada in seasons past? I don’t think so.

Evan White edges out Jo Adell for third place because he is guaranteed to be on the Opening Day roster for the Mariners. With the potentially shortened season, we may not see Adell for the majority of the 2020 season. However, if Adell were to make the Opening Day squad, he would pass White and maybe even challenge for the top prize with Luzardo.

Unfortunately for Robert, White, and possibly Adell, they won’t accrue enough eye-popping numbers to keep Jesus Luzardo and his playoff-bound Oakland A’s from a Rookie of the Year title. Fans were excited about Luzardo last year, but injuries kept him off the major league diamond until September, where he was lights out.

He pitched 12 innings in relief for the A’s and struck out 16 batters while collecting two holds and two saves. Now he is in line for a full workload in the starting rotation. He will likely be a big reason that Oakland makes the playoffs (as a wildcard team), and that will be enough to nudge him ahead of Robert on a non-playoff team like the White Sox.