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MLB awards: NL Rookie of the Year top seven contenders

By Bobby Mueller

ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 05: Ronald Acuna Jr. #13 of the Atlanta Braves rounds second base after hitting a solo homer to lead off the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at SunTrust Park on September 5, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 05: Ronald Acuna Jr. #13 of the Atlanta Braves rounds second base after hitting a solo homer to lead off the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at SunTrust Park on September 5, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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MLB awards
NEW YORK, NY – JANUARY 21: Corey Seager poses for a photo during the 2017 Baseball Writers’ Association of America awards dinner on Saturday, January 21, 2017 at the Hilton hotel in New York City. (Photo by Alex Trautwig/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /

The NL ROY race has two big-name contenders and five other rookies having impressive seasons as MLB awards voting starts to take place.

It’s been quite some time since the NL has seen a close Rookie of the Year vote in MLB awards voting. The last three years have resulted in unanimous winners, from Kris Bryant in 2015 to Corey Seager in 2016 to Cody Bellinger in 2017. All three players received all 30 first place votes in their respective seasons.

Not only did Bryant, Seager and Bellinger sweep the NL Rookie of the Year MLB awards votes, they also picked up NL MVP votes in their first seasons in the big leagues. They weren’t just good for rookies; they were good even when compared to the veterans in the league. It’s been an impressive crop of NL rookies the last three seasons.

In 2014, Jacob deGrom received 26 of 30 first place votes, with Billy Hamilton picking up the other four. The year before that, Jose Fernandez snagged 26 of 30 first place votes and Yasiel Puig earned the other four. That makes it five straight seasons without a close NL Rookie of the Year race.

This year will be different. This year may resemble the 2012 season, when Bryce Harper had 16 first place votes and Wade Miley had 12. This year has two high-profile rookies and another coming on strong who may very well garner all 30 votes among them, along with four other players who are off to good starts to their major league careers.

Of course, we must remember that we’re just finishing the first week or so of September. There are big moments yet to happen and stories still to be written. Four of the rookies I’ve identified as the top contenders for the NL Rookie of the Year Award are on potential playoff teams. The other three are out of the running, but shouldn’t be dismissed simply because their teams haven’t been successful. Let’s take a look at the top seven contenders for the NL Rookie of the Year Award.

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