Chicago Cubs outfielder turned into DH Seiya Suzuki was one of five finalists for the outfielder Silver Slugger award in the National League for the 2024 season and he was inexplicably robbed of the award on Tuesday.
MLB announced the three outfielder winners for the Silver Slugger and somehow Suzuki was not named one of the players awarded with the honor. Two members of the 2024 San Diego Padres received the recognition, rookie Jackson Merrill and Jurickson Profar, while World Series champ Teoscar Hernández added to his trophy case with his third Silver Slugger award.
No Silver Slugger award for the Cubs’ Seiya Suzuki, who was one of the 5 NL OF finalists.
— Meghan Montemurro (@M_Montemurro) November 12, 2024
The NL outfielder awards went to Teoscar Hernández (LAD), Jackson Merrill (SD) and Jurickson Profar (SD).
Milwaukee Brewers rookie center fielder Jackson Chourio was the fifth finalist.
So, let’s take a quick look at where Suzuki’s offensive stats ranked among the outfield finalists for Silver Slugger in the NL this past season.
Seiya Suzuki Rankings
.848 OPS (1st)
138 wRC+ (3rd)
.482 SLG (3rd)
.366 OBP (2nd)
.283 AVG (2nd)
21 HR (t-4th)
C’mon, that’s good enough to be one of the three Silver Slugger winners for outfielders. Robbed. Seiya Suzuki still criminally underrated around baseball and sadly by far too many Cubs fans too.
A reminder that from Aug. 9, 2023, through the end of the 2024 season, Suzuki ranks as the sixth best hitting outfielder in MLB, posting a 151 wRC+ during that timespan. That’s not only the NL, we’re talking all outfielders in MLB.
First, guys like Nico Hoerner and Pete Crow-Armstrong aren’t even gold glove finalists, then Dansby Swanson is snubbed of a gold glove at shortstop and now Seiya Suzuki is robbed of a Silver Slugger. What an awful MLB award season for the Cubs this year.
