This story was excerpted from Tim Stebbins’ Guardians Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
CLEVELAND — It’s a manager’s job to stump for his players ahead of baseball’s awards season. Stephen Vogt understands that also is the case for his peers, and that there rarely is uniformity with voters.
“Chase 100 percent should be in the running for Rookie of the Year,” Vogt said. “Parker as well.”
Tigers infielder Kevin McGonigle is viewed as the favorite in this race. The 22-year-old even checked in at No. 1 in a recent MLB.com poll, with Messick second and White Sox slugger Munetaka Murakami third.
McGonigle has had a good season, but it feels like DeLauter and Messick aren’t getting enough attention given what they have meant to the Guardians.
“You wish you had an offensive and pitching or defensive [award],” outfielder Steven Kwan said of the Rookie of the Year honor. “It’s hard to put into words how important they’ve been, but it’s easy to say we wouldn’t be where we are in the playoff hunt without them.”
Cleveland has not had a Rookie of the Year Award winner since Sandy Alomar Jr. in 1990. Let’s take a look at DeLauter and Messick’s seasons.
118 games, 493 plate appearances, .293/.363/.455, 129 hits, 26 doubles, 13 home runs, 60 RBIs, 3.0 bWAR, 2.9 fWAR
How good has DeLauter been? According to the Elias Sports Bureau, he could join Kwan (2022), Dale Mitchell (1947), Hal Trosky (‘34), Joe Harris (‘17), Joe Jackson (‘11) and Claude Rossman (‘06) as the only rookies in franchise history to finish in the top 10 in the AL in batting average.
Jackson (.408, second) is the only Cleveland rookie to finish in the top 5.
DeLauter put himself on the map by belting four home runs over his first three games this season. But he has been much more than a slugger. The 24-year-old has drawn 50 walks with just 73 strikeouts. The left-handed hitter has slashed .341/.391/.478 in 151 plate appearances vs. southpaws.
“He’s just a really good complete hitter,” Vogt said. “He uses the whole field. He doesn’t overcommit. I think that’s what leads to the lack of chase. He can use the whole field.”
DeLauter has split his time between right field (60 starts) and DH (51). McGonigle has played shortstop (75 starts), third base (57) and DH (two). In 608 plate appearances over 135 games, McGonigle has slashed .271/.372/.410 with 24 doubles, 14 home runs, 58 RBIs and 82 walks with 83 strikeouts.
Between his added defensive value and his offensive production, McGonigle has a higher bWAR (5.7) and fWAR (4.5) than DeLauter. He’s a worthy candidate. But DeLauter deserves to land on ballots.
“He’s such a talented hitter and a confident person. But he also works his backside off,” Vogt said of DeLauter. “At the end of the day, he knows that when he’s in there, he’s gonna perform. He believes that, and that’s really powerful.”
27 starts, 161 IP, 11-8, 2.46 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 161 strikeouts, 43 walks, 5.4 bWAR, 4.3 fWAR
It’s hard to imagine the Guardians being in the postseason race without Messick, a first-time All-Star this season who earned his rotation spot during Spring Training.
“With what he’s done,” Gavin Williams said, “I think he should be Rookie of the Year, even up there with Cy Young too.”
Messick was good in a seven-start debut stint last year (2.72 ERA). He’s been better this year. The 25-year-old ranks fifth among qualified starters in ERA, seventh in WHIP, seventh in fWAR and 13th in innings. He has allowed two or fewer runs in 10 straight starts, which is one outing shy of matching a franchise record set by Gaylord Perry in 1974.
Among his 27 starts, Messick has allowed three or fewer runs 24 times and two or fewer runs 21 times.
“The way he goes about his day,” Williams said, “you’d think he has 10 years [in the Majors], just from the training room to the weight room to his throwing program. He does everything at a high level.”
The perception is Messick is behind Cam Schlittler and Dylan Cease in the AL Cy Young Award race. But AL Rookie of the Year may come down to him and McGonigle, which could be fascinating.
McGonigle is an everyday player. Messick only takes the mound once every five games. Yet they have comparable WAR totals, and Messick has been one of the Majors’ best starting pitchers for a team vying for the postseason.
Messick has made a major impact.
“I think he should win every award he’s put in the category for,” Williams said.