Call to the pen
Fansided

Judge, Bellinger fourth pair to unanimously win Rookie of the Year

By Jennifer Rainwater

HOUSTON, TX - OCTOBER 29: Cody Bellinger
HOUSTON, TX - OCTOBER 29: Cody Bellinger /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 3
Next
NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 11: Singer Marc Anthony greets former New York Met Mike Piazza during ceremonies honoring the tenth anniversary of the September 11 2001 terrorist attcks prior to the game between the Mets and Chicago Cubs at Citi Field on September 11, 2011 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 11: Singer Marc Anthony greets former New York Met Mike Piazza during ceremonies honoring the tenth anniversary of the September 11 2001 terrorist attcks prior to the game between the Mets and Chicago Cubs at Citi Field on September 11, 2011 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

Rookie of the Year duality

It took 36 years for the Rookie of the Year Award winners from each league to win unanimously for the first time. That year came in 1987.

Then 23-year-old Mark McGwire of the Oakland Athletics not only broke the rookie record for home runs with 49 but also led the entire league in both homers and slugging percentage. He was a member of the AL All-Star team and finished the season driving in an astonishing 118 runs.

In the National League in 1987, San Diego Padres catcher Benito Santiago took home the Rookie of the Year Award after posting a batting line of .300/.324/.467, hitting 18 home runs and driving in 79. The 22-year-old did not make the NL All-Star team but took home a Silver Slugger Award for his efforts.

Six seasons later, in 1993, the phenomenon occurred again. Twenty-four-year-old Mike Piazza of the Dodgers, now a member of the Hall of Fame, batted .318/.370/.561, making the NL All-Star team, taking home a Silver Slugger Award after hitting 35 home runs and collecting 112 RBI and of course being named the NL Rookie of the Year.

His counterpart Tim Salmon, of the then-named California Angels, didn’t have quite the year that Piazza had. He did, however, belt out 31 homers and collect 96 RBI. He also had an incredible on-base percentage of .382. Interestingly, despite Salmon’s many successes in the home run department, hitting at least 17 homers each year for 11 of his 14-year career (five of which he hit over the 30 home run mark), Salmon never made an AL All-Star team.

And until Monday the most recent occurrence of this rare event happened in 1997 when Boston Red Sox rookie, 23-year-old Nomar Garciaparra not only hit 30 homers and 90 RBI, he led the AL in at-bats, hits and triples, while also taking home a Silver Slugger Award and appearing on the AL All-Star roster.

His National League counterpart, 22-year-old Scott Rolen of the Philadelphia Phillies, batted .283 with an insane on-base percentage of .377 while hitting 21 home runs and driving in 92.

Home/Los Angeles Dodgers