It’s not too early to start discussing the players who could be involved in the Rookie of the Year conversation in MLB.
There are some exciting candidates in both leagues.
Some of them are going to dazzle on the mound, while others will be main producer in the batter’s box.
Here are three prime Rookie of the Year candidates.
3. Spencer Torkelson
The Detroit Tigers had a surprisingly good 2021 season, finishing third in their division and setting the foundation to compete in 2022.
One of those foundations is young slugger Spencer Torkelson, expected to be the next great right-handed hitter of the Tigers for a long, long time.
Coincidentally, Tork, a consensus top-10 prospect in baseball, will have one of the greatest righties of the 21st century to mentor him: Miguel Cabrera.
Torkelson has a beautiful swing capable of hitting for both average and power, and has the look of a middle-of-the-order run-producer.
He hit 30 home runs over three levels in 2021: he slashed .312/.440/.569 in High-A, .263/.373/.560 in Double-A, and .238/.350/.531 in Triple-A.
He is ready for the majors, but there is a chance the Tigers leave him in the minor leagues for a few weeks to gain an extra year of control if the service time structure remains the same after a new CBA is negotiated.
In any case, he is a strong Rookie of the Year candidate even if he debuts in May.
Torkelson AL ROY 2022. He will make hinch look good.
— Boz (@ChrisBoz22) October 27, 2021
2. Edward Cabrera
The Miami Marlins’ pitcher already knows what it’s like to play in the big leagues, but he wasn’t very good in his 2021 audition.
He pitched in four levels in 2021, including MLB: Low-A, Double-A, Triple-A, and the bigs.
He was stellar on the minor leagues, but struggled in The Show with a 5.81 ERA in 26.1 frames.
He handed out way too many walks (6.49 per nine innings).
However, he is still very young, at 23, and is the Marlins’ number two prospect.
His stuff is fantastic, headlined by a 97-98 mph fastball, a very good slider, and an improving changeup.
He has the raw tools to explode in 2022, but will have a lot of competition just to make the Marlins rotation.
Sandy Alcantara, Trevor Rogers, and Pablo Lopez are shoo-ins for the rotation, and Elieser Hernandez, Cody Poteet, Sixto Sanchez, Cabrera, and Jesus Luzardo will compete for the remaining spots.
Cabrera has the talent to stick, and if he does, watch out.
1. Bobby Witt Jr.
For the Kansas City Royals, a team who had two World Series visits in the mid-2010s (with one win in 2015), the time to return to relevancy is now.
They have several exciting prospects and a solid foundation on their MLB roster, with Salvador Perez, Adalberto Mondesi, Nicky Lopez, Whit Merrifield, and others.
However, the most exciting piece in their organization hasn’t played in the majors yet.
Shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. is easily a top-five prospect in MLB and is ready to contribute at the start of the 2022 campaign.
To be fair, he was ready in the 2021 second half, but the Royals didn’t want to start his clock.
Witt started in Double-A and hit .295/.369/.570, then was promoted to Triple-A, where he slashed .285/.352/.581.
Between the two levels, he hit 33 homers and stole 29 bases.
He also plays a very good shortstop and has the qualities of a leader.
AL MVP: judge
NL MVP: Tatis Jr
AL CY: Cole
NL CY: deGrom
AL ROY: Witt Jr.
NL ROY: Cruz
WS Champs: White Sox https://t.co/oLA3tqyD1j— ChirqBird 🐢 (@ChirqBird) December 28, 2021
Witt is the complete package, and the American League will start to have nightmares about him in 2022.
He is perhaps the prime Rookie of the Year candidate in the AL.
