Being a good MLB rookie may be a curse in disguise.
Even though you make your mark in your first year in the majors, it's not an automatic one-way trip to a great career, or even a serviceable one. Although namestays like Nomar Garciaparra, Derek Jeter, Albert Pujols, and Mike Piazza have a shiny Rookie of the Year trophy on their mantle, so do Marty Cordova, Todd Hollandsworth, Pat Listach, and Bob Hamelin.
And while I did take a stab at predicting this year's RoY winners (Jeremy Hermida in the NL, Kenji Johjima in the AL) it's almost impossible to determine which players will get enough playing time to warrant a RoY-type season. It's usually a choice between several young prospects on bad teams and a couple of Asian veterans.
Exhibit A: The aforementioned Hermida has been hurt since mid-April, and until he returns (which could be this weekend) and catches back up with enough at-bats he is considered out of the picture.
So with full disclosure that this award has no impact on future seasons, let's look at which rookies have gotten considerable playing time so we have a good understanding of the award candidates.
National League
You can't talk about rookies without getting over the hurdle of the Florida Marlins. More than half their lineup is filled with newbs:
- Shortstop Hanley Ramirez: .331 average, 2 HR, 16 RBI, also with 11 stolen bases
- Second baseman Dan Uggla: .312 average, 5 HR, 20 RBI, and the name of a caveman
- Left fielder Josh Willingham: .285 average, 7 HR, 29 RBI, and three years of head coaching experience at Notre Dame
- Center fielder Reggie Abercrombie: .250 average, 3 HR, 11 RBI, and one overpriced clothing line
- First baseman Mike Jacobs: .221 average, 5 HR, 24 RBI, and since he has a boring name, I have no punchline here
Interestingly enough, those five Marlins are among nine total rookies with at least 100 at-bats so far. (That says a lot about the Marlins, but we'll save that for a later discussion). So who are the other four?
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