The accolades hold pouring in for the Orioles.
A day after 4 Orioles had been named American League All-Stars and simply hours after Adley Rutschman introduced he can be collaborating within the Home Run Derby, two Baltimore gamers acquired month-to-month awards by Major League Baseball.
Infielder Gunnar Henderson and nearer Félix Bautista had been each acknowledged by the league for his or her spectacular performances in June. Henderson was named the AL Rookie of the Month, whereas Bautista was picked because the AL Reliever of the Month.
Henderson was Baltimore’s finest hitter in June, stepping up after leadoff hitter Cedric Mullins, the Orioles’ high offensive performer by way of the primary two months, landed on the injured checklist. The 21-year-old slashed .320/.354/.640 — good for a .994 OPS — with 4 doubles, six house runs, 16 RBIs and three stolen bases.
He is the primary Oriole to win the award since Ryan Mountcastle in June 2021 and the sixth since MLB started handing out month-to-month awards, becoming a member of Rodrigo López (July 2002), Nick Markakis (August 2006), Nolan Reimold (June 2009) and Brian Matusz (August 2010).
Henderson opened the season because the consensus No. 1 prospect within the sport, however stumbled out of the gate. While displaying a powerful batting eye and eager plate self-discipline, Henderson struggled making constant contact and was hitting under .200 for the overwhelming majority of the season’s first two months.
He began to warmth up in late May after which broke out within the second week of June, hitting .526 with a whopping 1.603 OPS to earn AL Player of the Week honors. He capped off the perfect week of his profession with an imposing house run at Camden Yards estimated at 462 ft — the farthest ever hit onto Eutaw Street.
“It’s definitely going through those struggles, it just goes to show you that you’re going to get through it at some point and just stick with the process of it,” Henderson mentioned. “I feel like that’s been a big thing that I’ve learned so far.”
On the season, Henderson is hitting .239 with a .794 OPS, and his 1.7 wins above alternative on FanGraphs ranks fourth on the workforce.
Bautista, in the meantime, was acknowledged as the highest reliever within the Junior Circuit for the second month this season. After incomes the award in April, Bautista was his standard dominant self in June, tallying seven saves and permitting only one run in 10 2/3 innings. He struck out 22 of the 39 batters he confronted in June for a strikeout charge of 56.4%.
“I think I’ve just been doing a great job pitching overall right now,” Bautista mentioned by way of workforce interpreter Brandon Quinones. “I think we’re seeing all the fruits of my labor come to fruition and seeing all of that hard work finally paying off.”
Bautista on Sunday was one of many 4 gamers, together with Rutschman, outfielder Austin Hays and setup man Yennier Cano, to be named AL All-Stars for the primary time of their careers. The 6-foot-8 right-hander is on tempo to shatter a number of MLB strikeout information, together with the strikeouts-per-nine-innings file that Aroldis Chapman set in 2014. Chapman struck out 17.7 batters per 9 innings that yr; Bautista this yr is hanging out 18.4.
While he’s been dominant all season, June was maybe the perfect month of his profession as he upped the punchouts and lowered the walks. He didn’t subject a free move within the month after strolling 17 over the primary two.
“It’s the ability to get ahead and count, to be unpredictable a little bit with the heater and the split, and now he’s throwing a slider, too,” supervisor Brandon Hyde mentioned. “That’s a third thing that they have to think about, so it’s 102 [mph] with a tough split and now an occasional slider. He’s throwing some get-me-over sliders out of nowhere a little bit. Just a ton of confidence. Warmer weather. In April, there’s some kind of cool nights. You leave spring training, it’s different environments. It kind of takes guys a little bit to get going. He’s had a heck of a month.”
When Bautista first received the award, he was the primary Oriole to take action since Jim Johnson in May 2012 when the consideration was named the “Delivery Man of the Month” award. Now, he’s received it twice in a single season.
Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll was named the NL Rookie of the Month, whereas Philadelphia Phillies nearer Craig Kimbrel received the Senior Circuit’s Reliever of the Month award.
Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani and Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. had been named their league’s respective Players of the Month. Boston Red Sox left-hander James Paxton and San Diego Padres southpaw Blake Snell had been named the AL and NL Pitchers of the Month, respectively.
Baltimore Sun reporter Nathan Ruiz contributed to this story from New York.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com