New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso won the National League rookie of the year award on Monday. He was joined by Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez who was named the American League rookie of the year. Now the question is will Alonso be able to accomplish the unique double of winning the National League rookie of the year and National League most valuable player award in the same year?
Alonso led Major League Baseball with 53 home runs. He also batted .260, with 103 runs scored, 155 hits, 30 doubles, two triples, one stolen base, 72 walks, an on base percentage of .358 and a slugging percentage of .583. Alonso’s statistical line was clearly sensational. However one must note he struck out 183 times and his batting average was a little low to be in the conversation for MVP.
Only two times before has the rookie of the year been a most valuable player in the same season. The first time was 1975 when Fred Lynn accomplished the feat for the Boston Red Sox and the second time was Ichiro Suzuki with the Seattle Mariners in 2001. Do not expect Alonso to join Lynn and Suzuki.
The favourite at this time appears to be Cody Bellinger of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The star outfielder got off to an amazing start as he batted .403 over the first month of the season. He finished the year batting .305 with 47 home runs, 115 runs batted in and leading the National League with 351 total bases. The Dodgers also easily won the National League West, while the Mets did not make the postseason.
Alvarez was a regular in the middle of an Astros batting order that could have been considered one of the best in baseball. He batted .313 in 2019 with 27 home runs and 78 runs batted in. Alvarez also had 58 runs scored, 98 hits, 26 doubles, 52 walks, a .412 on base percentage and .655 slugging percentage. Alvarez also put up those statistics in only 87 games.
