One of the first adjectives attached to players who usually play in Japan and advance to the major leagues is ‘the most influential newcomer candidate’. Although they are veterans with long professional careers, it is because they have the qualification of ‘rookie’ in the major leagues.
In fact, Ichiro Suzuki and Shohei Otani have won the Rookie of the Year award, Hideki Matsui has the experience of reaching the 2nd place and Darvish Judo 3rd place. Among Korean players, Kang Jeong-ho ranked third and Ryu Hyun-jin ranked fourth in the rookie of the year voting. Apparently, players who have built professional careers in Asia are often more complete in terms of skills than newcomers in the major leagues. On the one hand, when transferring, it tends to be easy to receive opportunities after calculating how the clubs will use them.
It is for this reason that Senga Kodai (30, New York Mets) is often mentioned as a leading candidate for the National League Rookie Award this year. Senga, who earned a reputation as the best starting pitcher in Japanese professional baseball, signed a five-year, $75 million contract with the New York Mets ahead of this season. He is highly anticipated as the third starter, following Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. There is no doubt that he has an advantage in the Rookie of the Year race, as he has secured stable skills and stable opportunities.
However, Senga was not the most likely candidate for the National League Rookie Award predicted by gamblers. As a result of counting dividends by ‘BetMGM’, Senga stayed tied for fourth place with +700 ($800 refund including $700 dividend if you bet $100). There are players who are more powerful than Senga.
According to the dividend of ‘BetMGM’, the three players ahead of Senga were Corbin Carroll (Arizona), Miguel Vargas (LA Dodgers), and Ezequiel Tobar (Colorado). All three players are highly anticipated prospects within the team, and they are also players who already have scouting reports that are well-received.
Carroll (+400), a left-handed outfielder, made his major league debut last year and appeared in 32 games. In 32 games, he finished warm-up with a batting average of 0.260 and an OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) of 0.830. Although he is small, he has a long hitting power and is evaluated as having a good balance of offense, defense and run. Since his debut at the rookie level in 2019, he has been promoted repeatedly to the extent that he has gone through double-A, triple-A, and major leagues only last year. 슬롯사이트
Vargas (+600), the future of the Dodgers infield, debuted at the end of last year and appeared in 18 games. He is armed with the ability to see both the infield and the outfield. His performance in the major leagues last year was not very good, but as he is still a young 24-year-old player, he deserves better results. Tobar (+650) is also a 22-year-old prospect who made his major league debut last year and played in nine games. Being a shortstop, he has room to shine on defense as well.
Compared to the National League, where various candidates are crowded, the American League tends to be organized under the name of one player. Gunner Henderson, one of the best prospects in the major leagues, is the main character. Henderson, a 22-year-old infielder, made his debut last year and played 34 games in the major leagues. He played various positions such as third baseman, shortstop, and second baseman, hitting 4 homers, 18 RBIs, and an OPS of 0.788.
