Cincinnati’s Jonathan India won NL Rookie of the Year honors on Monday night, eight months after earning the team’s second base job during spring training and never letting it go during a stellar first season. Jeff Dean/Associated Press
It didn’t feel like Randy Arozarena was a rookie this season.
Tampa Bay’s speedy and powerful outfielder certainly didn’t play like one, either.
Arozarena won AL Rookie of the Year honors with a superb follow-up to his 2020 postseason heroics while Cincinnati Reds second baseman Jonathan India earned NL Rookie of the Year on Monday night.
If it didn’t seem like this wasn’t Arozarena’s first year, there’s a reason. The 26-year-old Cuban provided a stunning lift for the Rays during the 2020 postseason with 10 homers in 18 games during their run to the World Series.
But Arozarena didn’t play enough during the 2020 regular season to lose his rookie status so he was eligible for the award this year. He followed up his postseason breakout with an excellent season in 2021, finishing with a .274 average, 32 doubles, 20 homers and 69 RBI while adding excellent defense, helping the Rays return to the postseason.
Arozarena earned 22 of 30 first-place votes in balloting by members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, beating out Houston right-hander Luis Garcia and Tampa Bay infielder Wander Franco.
Arozarena is Tampa Bay’s first rookie of the year since outfielder Wil Myers in 2013.
The 20-year-old Franco has the label as one of MLB’s future stars and his performance in 2021 did nothing to discourage that billing. The infielder hit .288 with seven homers and 39 homers while playing less than half the season.
The 24-year-old Garcia was instrumental in the Astros’ run to the World Series this season. He had an 11-8 record with a 3.48 ERA and struck out 167 batters over 155 1/3 innings.
India won the NL award eight months after earning the team’s second base job during spring training and never letting it go during a stellar first season.
The 24-year-old India received 29 of 30 first-place votes, beating out Miami left-handed pitcher Trevor Rogers and St. Louis outfielder Dylan Carlson. Rogers got one first-place vote.
India was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2018 draft and played third base in college at Florida, but he’s found a home at second base in the big leagues and become a cornerstone for the Reds’ future. His quick impact in the big leagues was somewhat surprising considering he had just 111 at-bats above Single-A before 2021.
He was the Reds’ first rookie of the year winner since pitcher Scott Williamson in 1999.
The 6-foot, 200-pound India was an all-around threat – particularly during the second half of the season – often batting leadoff and finishing with a .269 average, 34 doubles, 21 homers, 69 RBI and 12 stolen bases. He also showed good discipline in the batter’s box, coaxing 71 walks to finish with a .376 on-base percentage, and scored 98 runs.
The 23-year-old Rogers finished second. He was chosen as an All-Star during an excellent season that included a 7-8 record and 2.64 ERA over 25 starts. The hard-throwing lefty struck out 155 batters over 133 innings.
Carlson was part of a young, talented outfield for a Cardinals team that made a late-season charge to the playoffs. Playing as a 22-year-old, he batted .266 with 18 homers and provided solid defense in all three outfield spots.
OBIT: Julio Lugo, who played for seven teams in a 12-year major league career and was the shortstop for Boston’s 2007 World Series championship team, has died, the Red Sox said. He was 45.
ESPN reported that the cause of death was presumed to be a heart attack, citing Lugo’s family.
Lugo batted .269 with 80 homers and 475 RBI from 2000-11 with the Astros, Devil Rays, Red Sox, Cardinals, Orioles and Braves. He batted .385 in the 2007 World Series sweep of the Colorado Rockies.
BRAVES: The World Series champion Atlanta Braves added depth at catcher by signing Manny Pina to a two-year, $8 million contract.
Pina is the first player filing for free agency after the World Series to sign with a different club.
He will make $3.5 million next season and $4.5 million in 2023. The contract also includes a $4 million club option for 2024 with no buyout.
The 34-year-old Pina hit a career-best 13 home runs in 75 games with Milwaukee this past season, his sixth with Brewers.
MARINERS: The Seattle Mariners have filled out their coaching staff for the 2022 season, adding minor-league director Andy McKay and Triple-A Manager Kristopher Negron to the major league staff.
McKay, who has overseen Seattle’s farm system since being hired in October 2015, was added to the Mariners’ staff as a major league coach and senior director of baseball development. Negron, who managed Seattle’s Triple-A affiliate in Tacoma to a Pacific Coast League title last season, will be the Mariners’ first-base coach.
Seattle also promoted Jarret DeHart to hitting coach and director of hitting strategy, and named Tony Arnerich hitting coach.
Other coaches returning to work for Manager Scott Servais include Manny Acta (third-base coach), Perry Hill (infield coach), Trent Blank (bullpen coach, director of pitching strategy), Carson Vitale (field coordinator) and Pete Woodworth (pitching coach).
Tim Laker, the hitting coach last season, declined an invitation to return for the 2022 season, the team said. Bench coach Jarred Sandberg was not brought back.
CUBS: Chicago hired former Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Daniel Moskos as their assistant pitching coach.
The 35-year-old Moskos will assist pitching coach Tommy Hottovy on the staff of manager David Ross. He spent the past two seasons coaching in the New York Yankees’ farm system after working for Driveline Baseball, a training center near Seattle.
YANKEES: The New York Yankees hired former Mets manager Luis Rojas as their third base coach a month after he lost his job with the crosstown rivals.
Rojas managed the Mets for the past two seasons. The team declined its 2022 option for him on Oct. 4, a day after finishing third in the NL East at 77-85.
Rojas will take the spot of Phil Nevin, who had been the Yankees’ third-base coach since the 2018 season. Nevin was let go last month, shortly after he waved home Aaron Judge in a key spot in the AL wild-card game at Boston – Judge was easily thrown out, and the Red Sox went on to win.
The 40-year-old Rojas, the son of former big league player and manager Felipe Alou, spent the last 16 seasons with the Mets’ organization. The Mets were 103-119 with him as manager.
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