MLB
Ronald Acuña Jr. and Shohei Ohtani Win Rookie of the Year
Last night, MLB announced the Rookie of the Year Award winners in each league. In the National League, the Rookie of the Year was Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. In the American League, the Rookie of the Year was Angels DH/pitcher Shohei Ohtani. Both rookies had outstanding seasons for their teams and made a lasting impression in the baseball world. Going into the 2019 season, both rookies will look to continue their success and lead their teams to an eventual World Series title.
NL Rookie of the Year: Ronald Acuña Jr.
The 2018 season was nothing short of phenomenal for Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. Acuña, 20, came up with the Braves in late-April and took control of the baseball world. Acuña finished his debut season slashing .293/.366/.552 with 26 homers and 64 RBIs. His offensive production helped propel the Braves to a division title; their first since the 2013 season. He also went through a stretch in which he hit homer after homer after homer. Acuña earned NL Player of the Week honors for August 19th and earned NL Player of the Month for the month of August. The only issue with Acuña was that his defense was a tad shaky. He committed five errors in left field, which was second in the National League behind Rhys Hoskins. Though he looks to continue to improve his defense, his bat will continue to carry the Braves lineup into 2019 and beyond.
AL Rookie of the Year: Shohei Ohtani
The big talk of the last offseason was Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani. The Angles signed the two-way star to add another bat to their lineup, and also add another arm to their weak rotation. Ohtani was great on the mound but was even better as a hitter. Ohtani hit .285 with 22 homers and 61 RBIs for the Angels. However, his production slowed down slightly towards the end of the season when he was shut down for partial damage in his elbow. He did not pitch again in 2018 after that and finished off with a record of 4-2, along with an ERA of 3.31 and 63 strikeouts. Ohtani finished strong and earned AL Rookie of the Month in both April and September. Ohtani will look to recover from the damage in his elbow and continue as the two-way star the Angels signed.
Photo Credit to Matt Beagen via Flickr
