Kris Bryant and Geovany Soto are the most recent Cubs to win Rookie of the Year. In 2015, Kris Bryant slashed .275/.369/.488 with 25 Home runs, winning the award and ending a 6-year playoff drought. Before that, Geovany Soto hit .285 with an OPS of .868 to win the 2008 award and an All-Star appearance.
Kerry Wood (1998), Jerome Walton (1989), Ken Hubbs (1962), and Billy Williams (1961) were the other great Cubs rookies. With the Cubs signing Seiya Suzuki earlier in March, he is in a position to become the seventh Cub to win this award.
Current Odds
Draftkings currently has Seiya Suzuki tied with Oneil Cruz for the best odds to win Rookie of the Year at +380 or 3.8 to 1. Oneil Cruz is one of three NL Central candidates including Seiya and Hunter Greene for the Reds. Hunter Greene just made his first Opening Day roster and was congratulated by Marcus Stroman. Here we will take a look at Suzuki, Greene, Cruz, and the other young National Leaguers looking to snag Rookie of the Year.
Shout to my brother @HunterGreene17 on making the Opening Day roster! Excited to see you dominate all future. Go be great young king!
— Marcus Stroman (@STR0) March 30, 2022
Oneil Cruz (+380) – Pittsburgh Pirates SS
Oneil Cruz stands 6’7 out of the Dominican Republic and offers a ton of pop from a middle infielder. Cruz appeared in two games last season for Pittsburgh, going 3-9 with a Homerun. This year the 23-year-old looks to break into the everyday lineup. Averaging Fangraphs projections, Cruz appears in 108 games with a slash line of .263/.318/.469 for OPS of .787.
Cruz is also projected to add 18 Home runs and 54 RBI, leading to a WAR of 2.2. He also will have to pass Kevin Newman for the Shortstop position, although he could play some corner outfield as Pittsburgh is weak at those spots.
Seiya Suzuki (+380) – Chicago Cubs OF/DH
SEIYA SUZUKI'S FIRST HIT IS A MOONSHOT! 💪🏼
(📸: @WatchMarquee) @suzuki_seiya_sb pic.twitter.com/VO4iv9fJbM
— Cubs Zone ™️ (@CubsZone) March 30, 2022
Seiya Suzuki hit his first home run with the Cubs yesterday and looks to add more in his first MLB season. Fangraphs is projecting a line of .269/.361/.484 for an OPS of .845. He should be near 23 Homeruns and 71 RBI, leading to a WAR of 2.7 after removing an outlier.
Also in Suzuki’s favor is playing time and experience. Seiya is 27 years old, has experience at the professional baseball level, and is expected to play over 125 games this year. This additional playing time could be the margin that allows Suzuki to beat Cruz for the Rookie of the Year.
Joey Bart (+750) – San Francisco Giants C
Next on the odds list is the catcher for San Francisco, Joey Bart. Bart was the #2 overall pick in the June 2018 Amateur draft and appeared in two games last year for the Giants. Bart went 2-6 last year, and this season aims for a slash line of .235/.288/.377. With a .665 OPS with 10 home runs and 39 RBI, Suzuki should be able to beat those projections or the Cubs may have bigger issues.
CJ Abrams (+900) – San Diego Padres SS
Next is the #6 pick from the 2019 Amateur draft, CJ Abrams. Abrams is only projected to get 32 games and slash .243/.295/.364, but if there are injuries he could find a role on the Padres earlier than anticipated.
Abrams has a lot of speed and is a left-handed hitter. Even if he does not make the leap to majors this year he will be on many radars heading into 2023.
Bryson Stott (+1000) – Philadelphia Phillies SS
Bryson Stott was drafted in the same draft as CJ Abrams but went #14. He hits lefty for the Phillies and is projected to play 90 games in 2022. Averaging the projections gives a line of .243/.317/.387, an OPS of .704.
He offers average power, looking for 10 home runs and 42 RBI. All in all, Stott should be a 1.1 WAR player by the end of 2022. Stott should be decent but it would be hard to imagine he threatens to win Rookie of the Year.
Hunter Greene (+1000) – Cincinnati Reds P
Reds announce that top prospect Hunter Greene and his 102 MPH fastball will make their MLB debut on April 10 🔥
(h/t @PitchingNinja) pic.twitter.com/MEV49JH5ki
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) March 30, 2022
Last on the list are two pitchers, the first being Hunter Greene. Like many former Reds pitchers, Greene throws heat. Hunter consistently throws north of 100mph and pairs it with a nice slider. The 22-year-old will make his first start on April 10th and looks to be a part of this starting rotation in 2022.
Greene’s projections have an ERA of 4.66 and WHIP of 1.35 which are both a little higher than average. It looks like he should finish with a WAR slightly over 1, but him being in the Opening Day starting rotation means he will have the opportunity to make a run at Rookie of the Year.
Sixto Sánchez (+1300) – Miami Marlins P
Sixto Sánchez will be the final man on the list. He started 7 games in 2021 and went 3-2 with a 3.46 ERA, Sixto will be looking to solidify his spot in the starting rotation. Projections give Sánchez a 3.79 ERA as well as his WHIP and WAR both around 1.2.
Similar to Green, he will get over 20 starts this year meaning he will have the chance to pass Suzuki in the chase for Rookie of the Year.
Does Seiya have a chance?
Seiya Suzuki has a great shot at winning Rookie of the Year this season. Coupling his own pro ball experience with a National League that doesn’t have a ton of rookies looking to break out, 2022 is the perfect year to let the big dog eat.
