Angels' Shohei Ohtani continues to have a compelling, if polarizing case for the Rookie of the Year Award
The arguments around Ohtani will pertain to his playing time
•
1 min read
On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Angels announced DH-slash-pitcher Shohei Ohtani had suffered new damage to his ulnar collateral ligament, resulting in a recommendation of Tommy John surgery. Ohtani then had a 4-for-4 night, including his 17th and 18th home runs of the season.
Whatever the Angels decide to do with Ohtani the rest of the season -- shut him down, allow him to continue on as the DH, some combination thereof -- it's obvious that he will have the most compelling and polarizing candidacy for the American League Rookie of the Year Award.
Ohtani entered Thursday batting .287/.367/.579 (155 OPS+) in 279 plate appearances. On the mound, he's delivered 51 innings of 3.31 ERA (128 ERA+) ball. Add his production together, and he's been worth around 3.5 wins above replacement, per Baseball-Reference.
That's a greater amount than what either Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar, the pair of talented young New York Yankees infielders most often named as the other favorites in the running, has produced this season. It's also at least equal to Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Joey Wendle, who leads rookie AL hitters in WAR and has nearly 180 more plate appearances.
How voters weigh playing time versus production, then, will dictate Ohtani's hardware fate. Generally, players are penalized for missing too much time, either due to injury or poor play. Ohtani's discrepancy is rooted in unusual circumstances, however. He lost playing time at DH due to injury, but also because the Angels gave him days off around his pitching schedule.
Voters have literally never encountered this scenario. If they're willing to overlook at least some of the difference in plate appearances, Ohtani will win the award on the basis of being the best rookie performer on a rate basis. Even if voters aren't as forgiving, Ohtani still has a chance to win the award and/or finish highly in voting -- just, perhaps, not as highly as his output demands.
No matter how things play out, keep an eye on the proceedings. One day, we could be having a similar discussion as it pertains to Ohtani and the MVP or Cy Young Awards.
