MLB Awards Watch: Top 5 AL ROY candidates through May

Which American League rookies are rising to the top of our MLB awards watch? Here are our top 5 AL Rookie of the Year candidates through May.

Two months into the 2016 season, the American League features several impressive rookies, but it may be more appealing for fans to wonder who else could join the fray in the weeks and months ahead.

There are still a few top prospects who many pegged as leading Rookie of the Year candidates heading into the year who, for one reason or another, haven’t really latched on yet in the present campaign. Byron Buxton has played in only 21 games thus far for the Twins, slashing a disappointing .200/.234/.350. He was recently called back up after a minor league demotion, so if things finally click for the 22-year-old outfielder, he certainly has the talent to enter the conversation.

Joey Gallo recently made a one at-bat cameo for the Rangers, and it’s anyone’s guess if and when he will resurface in the majors this year. Still, his 137 career minor league home runs since 2012 have a lot of fans in Texas fantasizing what he could eventually do at the big league level.

Highly-touted hurlers like Blake Snell and Jose Berrios have had a handful of appearances, to varying results. There’s no guarantee they’ll be back up, but they’re definitely worth keeping in mind.

Other rookies have shown encouraging signs lately, but ultimately have too few plate appearances under their belts to warrant a spot on this list just yet. Orioles left fielder Hyun Soo Kim comes to mind (.391/.466/.500 in 73 PA), and he won’t be the last Korean import mentioned here.

Without further ado, here are our top 5 candidates for the AL Rookie of the Year Award through May.

All statistics updated through June 3.

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