Is Yankees' Miguel Andujar or Gleyber Torres AL Rookie of the Year? How about neither one

by Felix Pantaleon

The New York Yankees will head into the 2018 MLB playoffs, thanks in part to the stellar play of rookie third baseman Miguel Andujar and rookie second baseman Gleyber Torres. But will either player get more votes than Los Angeles Angels rookie pitcher/slugger Shohei Ohtani in American League Rookie of the Year balloting?

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Internally, it makes for a great debate in the Yankees clubhouse. Who is the American League Rookie of the Year: third baseman Miguel Andujar or second baseman Gleyber Torres?

Andujar is hitting .298 with 25 home runs and 85 RBI in 143 games this season.

Torres is hitting .276 with 23 home runs and 73 RBI in 118 games this season.

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But outside the comfy confines of Yankee Stadium, the answer is simple: neither Yankee is the 2018 AL Rookie of the Year.

MLB.com surveyed its members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.

In the poll, 26 of the 36 first-place votes went to Los Angeles Angels slugger/pitcher Shohei Ohtani.

Andujar finished a distant second with nine first-place votes.

Torres, who made the 2018 American League All-Star team, finished third with just one first-place vote.

Here’s the details of the voting, per MLB.com:

Shoehei Ohtani, Angels (154 points)
Ohtani is the first player in MLB history with 20 home runs as a hitter and 50 strikeouts as a pitcher. He needs one more stolen base to join Mike Trout and Devon White as the only rookies with a 20-home run, 10-stolen-base season in Angels history.

Miguel Andujar, Yankees (93 points)
Andujar’s 51 multi-hit games are the most by a Yankees rookie since Tom Tresh had 54 in 1962, and the most by an AL rookie since Trout had 56 in 2012. Andujar’s 43 doubles are the most for a Yanks rookie since Joe DiMaggio had 44 in 1936.

Gleyber Torres, Yankees (71 points)
Torres’ 23 home runs are the third most by a Yankees player before his 22nd birthday; ahead of him on that list: Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio. His seven two-run home runs are the second most in the Majors, trailing only Brewers first baseman Jesus Aguilar, who has eight.

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