5th Rookie of the Year dream from Japan, PIT fireballer trying to break with 100 mile fastball...30 out of 39 skins
Jul 02, 2024
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As a result of MLB.com 's announcement on the 2nd (Korea time), Skins ranked No. 1 in the National League (NL).
Of the 39 panel members of the media, including reporters, editors and commentators, 30 voted first for Skins. Analysts say that Skins, who topped the mock vote for the first time with overwhelming votes, is occupying an advantageous position in the NL Rookie of the Year competition at a time when he is over half the pennant race.
San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill, who received two first-place votes, came in second, and Los Angeles Dodgers Japanese pitcher Shota Imana, who had been in first place for nearly two months, was pushed to third place with only two first-place votes.
Skins first got the vote in the second mock vote, which was released on May 7, and after reaching third place in the third mock vote on June 4, he conquered the top in a month. It's as fast a ball as a fast runner.
MLB.com says 'Skins did not make the top five in May's vote. However, it rose to third place in June and rose to the top in July. It's a bit surprising, but not unexpected'Skins is commanding the mound with a very hard ability to combine the two pitches, a 100-mile fastball with a messy splinker. The average fastball speed is 99.2 miles and the strikeout rate is 34.1 percent, the highest in the Major League. He evaluated that not only the Pirates but also the baseball fans wanted him to be.
As of today, Skins has four wins and a 2.06 ERA in nine games. It is 52 ⅓ innings, which is more than 30 innings short of the regular innings (83), but it is attracting fans' attention with its overwhelming pitching content. He gave up 44 hits and 10 walks against 205 batters, while striking out 70. WHIP 1.03 and a hit rate of 0.228.
Skins, who made his major league debut against the Chicago Cubs on the 12th of last month and confirmed the possibility with six hits and three runs in four innings, has made a strong impression every time he takes the mound. Except for the first game, he has saved all eight games he has pitched so far within three runs, and has achieved quality starts seven times.
It's because he joined the rotation late and the number of appearances is small, but he can be used as an ace no matter which team he puts it on. It will be difficult to fill the regulation innings (162), but at the current pace, it is no exaggeration to say that the NL Rookie of the Year has been secured.
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Los Angeles Dodgers Yoshinobu Yamamoto (74 innings, 6 wins, 2 losses, 2.92, 84 strikeouts) is also considered a contender, but he was placed on the injured list with a right shoulder injury on the 17th of last month and was pushed out of the top 5 in the mock vote.
Nomo Hideo of the Dodgers in 1995, Kazuhiro Sasaki of the Seattle Mariners in 2000, Ichiro Suzuki of Seattle in 2001, and Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels in 2018. Until mid-June, it was likely that the fifth Japanese Rookie of the Year would come out, but Skins is poised to break the mood and give Pittsburgh the second best rookie trophy of all time after Jason Bay in 2004.
jhno@sportschosun.com
