By Alfredo Echenique
04 Oct 2023, 1:46 PM EDT
The fruits of Ronald Acuña Jr.’s excellent campaign are already beginning to be seen. The Venezuelan has just received his first individual award after the end of the regular season. The young outfielder was named player of the year by Baseball Digest magazine.
Acuña was elected with 13 of the 23 possible votes, beating Shohei Ohtani who accumulated nine votes. While Mookie Betts, star of the Los Angeles Dodgers, closed the podium as third in the voting.
The panel of experts who vote to choose the best player of the season is made up of journalists, commentators, former players, managers and even executives related to baseball. Last year Aaron Judge was chosen by the specialized magazine as the best of the 2022 harvest.
Acuña Jr. had numbers worthy of a true MVP. .337 average, 1.012 OPS, 217 hits, 106 RBIs, 41 home runs and 73 stolen bases. These last two statistics gave the Venezuelan a unique record in the Major Leagues.
Now Acuña Jr. and his team, which finished as the franchise with the best record of the season, will go to play in the playoffs to seek their fifth World Series. In principle they will have to wait for the winner between the Miami Marlins and the Philadephia Phillies who are competing for the wild card.
The rest of the best players of the season, according to Baseball Digest magazine
Among the winners that Baseball Digest magazine announced as the most outstanding of the season also included New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole as the best pitcher of the campaign. Followed by him, appears Blake Snell who also had an outstanding season.
Dominican Félix Bautista also appeared as the winner in the category of best reliever of the year. With an 8-2 record, an ERA of just 1.48 and 39 saves, he was a key piece for the Baltimore Orioles this season.
Acuña Jr. now hopes to win the National League MVP award, which will be presented after the World Series. His closest opponent will be Mookie Betts, who also had an excellent season and is going for his second award, after being the MVP of the 2018 season with the Boston Red Sox.
Keep reading:
· Ronald Acuña Jr made history in the Major Leagues and his children became the true protagonists [Video]
· Ronald Acuña Jr., Fernando Tatis Jr. and José Altuve, among the Latinos who sold the most jerseys this season in the Major Leagues
· Venezuelan Miguel Cabrera will continue in the Major Leagues as a special assistant for the Detroit Tigers