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Major League Baseball kicked off its annual awards week festivities on Monday night by announcing the winners of the Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year award in each league. (The Manager of the Year awards will be handed out on Tuesday, the Cy Young awards on Wednesday, and the Most Valuable Players on Thursday.)
These awards are voted on by 30 members of the Baseball Writers Association of America (that’s two per MLB city in each league). Votes were submitted before the beginning of the playoffs, meaning that only regular-season contributions are taken into account.
Kurtz wins AL Rookie of the Year
Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz took home the honors in the American League, topping teammate and Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson and Boston Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony.
Kurtz, 22, hit .290/.383/.619 (173 OPS+) with 36 home runs and 86 runs batted in across 117 games. His contributions were worth an estimated 5.4 Wins Above Replacement, according to Baseball Reference’s calculations. Kurtz led all qualifying rookies in home runs and slugging percentage.
Kurtz is the first Athletics player to win Rookie of the Year since closer Andrew Bailey in 2009. He’s the first position player to do it since shortstop Bobby Crosby in 2004. Overall, Kurtz is the ninth Athletics player to ever claim the award, though that accounting includes the franchise’s time in Philadelphia and Oakland.Â
Wilson, 23, hit .311/.355/.444 (121 OPS+) with 13 home runs and five stolen bases in 125 games.
Anthony, 21, batted .292/.396/.463 (140 OPS+) with eight home runs and four stolen bases in 71 games.