MLB: Three under the radar Rookie of the Year candidates
By Nick Stevens
The bat is nice, but Andres Gimenez might just be an elite MLB defender.
The 2020 season hasn’t been a great year for the New York Mets, but they still have an outside shot of earning a playoff spot, there’s new ownership coming into town, Pete Alonso isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, and Andres Gimenez has exceeded expectations in his rookie campaign.
The versatile defender hasn’t been a full-time member of the Mets starting lineup for the entire season, but he has appeared in 38 games, slashing .284/.337/.421 with two home runs, three doubles, two triples, and seven stolen bases. When you rank in the 92nd percentile in terms of sprint speed, swiping bags isn’t much of a problem.
The 22-year-old infielder ranks second among National League rookies in fWAR (0.7), fourth in wRC+ (109), second in runs scored (18), and first in stolen bases.
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While the bat may be better than expected at this point, his premier defensive abilities have been on full display at second base, shortstop, and third base this season. His four Infield Outs Above Average rank in the 96th percentile among all MLB infielders and his 86% success rate in the field is 6% higher than his expected success rate.
Gimenez won’t win the ROTY Award, but he deserves to be in the conversation. Even if he doesn’t win the hardware, winning a starting role on the Mets 2021 Opening Day roster is also a pretty good reward for his rookie performance.