The AL Rookie of the Year race comes down to three names: Neftali Feliz, Austin Jackson, and Brennan Boesch. In that order. Unlike the NL, the American League is not going through the same youth-led renaissance, as evidenced by this year’s All-Star Game, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t top-tier talent developing in the senior circuit. Let’s break it down starting at the bottom of the shortlist with Detroit Tigers RF Brennan Boesch.
The only reason Boesch is in this discussion is because he put himself on a torrid pace through the first half and limped through July at .295/.358/.497, which is certainly a RoY line in a year like this one. He also leads AL rookies with 14 HR, a .455 SLG, and a .784 OPS.
However, what is holding Boesch back is his miserable August in which he’s hit .184/.197/.299 to lower his overall line to .270/.329/.455. If Boesch can hit like he did at any time in the first half, he could bring his name back into serious contention for this award, but if the season ended today, he wouldn’t be Rookie of the Year. Here’s his stats:
| BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | HR | RBI | BB | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .270 | .329 | .455 | .784 | 14 | 61 | 31 | 85 |
Moving over a spot in the Tigers’ outfield, Austin Jackson has proven to be a consistent top-of-the-order hitter and an above-average-fielding centerfielder: the best-case scenario when the Tigers acquired him from the Yankees this offseason. In fact, the Tigers are quickly emerging as the big winners of that winter blockbuster in which they netted both Jackson and 26-year-old Max Scherzer who has also had an impressive breakout year.
Jackson started the year off hot and it was inevitable that he wasn’t going to sustain the numbers he put up in April and May, but he has leveled off at .307/.360/.410, leading all AL rookies who qualify in batting average, OBP, and SB (21), all while playing a solid centerfield. He also leads the AL in strikeouts with 137. His numbers:
| BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | HR | RBI | BB | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .307 | .360 | .410 | .770 | 2 | 29 | 37 | 137 |
This brings us to Neftali Feliz, the 22-year-old closer for the Texas Rangers. Feliz is known just as much for his heat as Texas is, and he brings it every time up. He’s pitched his way to 32 saves, and a 3.38 ERA in 56 innings, resulting in a 0.98 WHIP. Feliz is a virtual lock to break Kazuhiro Sasaki’s rookie saves record of 37 set in 2000 and is a huge reason why the Rangers have found their way to the top of the AL West.
| IP | ER | ERA | HR | BB | K | K/BB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 56.0 | 21 | 3.38 | 5 | 16 | 58 | 3.63 |
The fight is really between Jackson and Feliz, and Feliz comes out ahead pretty easily. It’s not even really a fight. Any time you break a rookie record, you can pretty much pencil yourself in for Rookie of the Year. Feliz has been worth a whopping 2.4 wins this season, while Jackson has been barely positive (but still respectable) at 0.3. Add in that Feliz is a high-profile closer for a contender and he’s the consensus winner for the 2010 AL Rookie of the Year.
Danny Valencia says hello. He has a higher WAR than all 3 of them.
Valencia doesn’t have enough at-bats to qualify or he would’ve been in the conversation.
You can only disqualify yourself from ROY by having too many at bats the previous year. Compare Valencia to Jackson…and he did all of his in half the at bats. Try not to speak like an expert when you don’t even have novice intelligence please.
Thanks.
I apologize Justin, I used a poor choice of words. By qualify, I meant he didn’t qualify for the batting title, not RoY, so he was nothing but a hot-hitting rookie on August 30 when this article was written. Valencia has had a terrific 75 games. So did Brennan Boesch. If Valencia had another, say, 30-40 games, and he kept hitting at the same pace, then yes, he should probably win RoY. I think Joe Pawlikowski just wrote about this a couple days ago over at Fangraphs where he also left out Danny Valencia. Valencia just doesn’t have enough at-bats to warrant the award. Here’s the Fangraphs article:
http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/danny-valencias-rookie-of-the-year-case/
Wade Davis of the Tampa Bay Rays should win it and he’s not even mentioned in this shoddy article.