For the longest time, the so-called pundits of baseball have viewed Seattle Mariners rookie Julio Rodriguez as the favorite to earn the American League Rookie of the Year award.
However, he might have himself a challenger, at least in a few categories.
Baltimore Orioles rookie catcher Adley Rutschman is the challenger in question.
Despite having played 32 fewer games than Rodriguez, Rutschman is now ahead of him in fWAR and OPS, which are two very important stats.
Jay Croucher of PointsBet tweeted the comparison between the two rookies and made the bold claim that Rutschman is the better choice to win the AL Rookie of the Year award.
Adley Rutschman is now beating Julio Rodriguez in fWAR (despite playing 32 less games) and OPS.
He is already the best catcher in baseball.
This is your AL ROY.
— Jay Croucher (@croucherJD) August 17, 2022
Will Rutschman Beat J-Rod?
We’ll see if Croucher is right, but right now, Rutschman is playing some of his best baseball.
Rodriguez has dominated the race for the AL Rookie of the Year for the vast majority of the season, but it appears that Rutschman is now challenging him in some very important categories.
Perhaps Rutschman could end up being named Rookie of the Year when it’s all said and done.
It’s likely going to be a tight race between him and Rodriguez.
The 24-year-old catcher’s offense is still coming around, but he is hitting .250 with seven home runs and 23 RBI.
He and Rodriguez are neck and neck in OPS.
The fact that Rutschman is leading these two categories while he’s played 32 fewer games than Rodriguez is something.
Still, the race for the Rookie of the Year award in the American League is going to be a tight one for sure.
Croucher made a bold claim by saying Rutschman would be the eventual winner of the award, but he’s not completely off the mark.
It could very well happen.
NEXT: Adley Rutschman Is Trying Out A New Position