Tigers' Kevin McGonigle in line to win a major award in MLB originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Infielder Kevin McGonigle has outperformed expectations for the Detroit Tigers, which is what earned him his eight-year ($150 million) contract extension. Through 39 games, the 21-year-old is hitting .293 with a .830 OPS and has walked (23) more than he's struck out (21).
McGonigle is on a cold streak as of late, hitting .192 with a .515 OPS in his last seven games. However, this cold streak hasn't hindered his chances of winning the American League Rookie of the Year Award.
Detroit Tigers Kevin McGonigle is a favorite to win the American League Rookie of the Year Award
In a poll taken by MLB experts, McGonigle finished second (14 first-place votes) to Chicago White Sox first baseman Munetaka Murakami (20 first-place votes) to win the American League Rookie of the Year Award.
"The fun thing about this list of rookies is that almost all of them lead their peer group in something, illustrating the depth of the class," wrote MLB.com's Jason Foster. "In McGonigle's case, he led all MLB rookies in on-base percentage (.395), hits (43) and doubles (11) entering Monday, and was tied for the lead in triples (two). He hit .327 with a .946 OPS in April, collecting 32 hits along the way. That was tops among MLB rookies in all three categories."
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Among rookies, McGonigle is leading in batting average, is second to Murakami in walks and is tied for the lead in triples (two). The fight for the American League Rookie of the Year Award will likely come down to the wire. And with the American League Central so weak, McGonigle's and Murakami's performances of lifting their teams to the postseason could influence the voting.
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