2024 MLB Award Predictions
NL Rookie of the Year and NL Cy Young: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Los Angeles Dodgers
Two foreign-born players came overseas to the MLB and finished top five in Rookie of the Year voting last season, with Kodai Senga finishing as the runner-up in the NL, while Masataka Yoshida finished sixth in the AL. Shohei Ohtani was the last Asian-born player to win Rookie of the Year and now teammate Yoshinobu Yamamoto will be the next one. Yamamoto was nearly untouchable in his seven seasons with the Orix Buffaloes of Nippon Professional Baseball. Last season was his best, as he had a 1.16 ERA (Estimated Run Average), allowing just two home runs and striking out 176 batters in 24 games, leading to Yamamoto winning his third straight NPB MVP award. Yamamoto is playing for arguably the best team in baseball and will have a chance to be the ace of this star-studded rotation.
AL Rookie of the Year: Jackson Holiday, Baltimore Orioles
Even though he didn’t make Baltimore’s Opening Day roster, Jackson Holliday had a huge spring, posting a .954 OPS (On-base Plus Slugging) with three doubles, two triples, and two homers in Grapefruit League play. The 20-year-old phenom is ranked by MLB Pipeline as the No. 1 prospect in the game, and he is widely expected to make his big league debut this year.
AL Cy Young: Corbin Burns, Baltimore Orioles
Corbin Burnes, who won the 2021 NL Cy Young, was acquired by the Orioles in hopes of solidifying the start of their rotation. After a so-so start to last season, Burnes was filthy down the stretch, posting a 2.73 ERA and striking out over 28% of the batters he faced in his last 15 starts. Opposing batters managed only a .557 OPS over that span. Add that to his nearly unmatched pedigree over the past three seasons, and it’s not hard to see why he’s among the favorites.
NL MVP: Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers
Since joining the Dodgers, Mookie Betts has finished within the top five in MVP voting in three of the last four seasons, being the runner-up in 2020 and 2023. Betts will now face a new challenge: shifting over to shortstop, a position he has played just 16 games at the professional level. Betts was tasked with playing the most games at second base in his career last season and thrived, having six defensive runs saved in 485 innings at the position. No matter what position he’s played, Betts’ offense has never waivered and last season was no different, hitting 40 doubles, driving in 107 runs, and launching a career-best 39 home runs, en route to his sixth Silver Slugger award. Betts hasn’t won an MVP since 2018, but the drought will end this season.
AL MVP: Juan Soto, New York Yankees
I’m betting that moving from pitcher-friendly Petco Park to the lefty hitter’s paradise that is Yankee Stadium will make Soto’s power even more pronounced and land him an MVP award. Soto has long been viewed as one of baseball’s elite hitters, combining powerful slugging with an incredible eye at the plate. While he’s led the majors in walks each of the last three seasons, with Aaron Judge now behind him in the lineup, the damage Soto does with his bat could elevate to another level. Opposing pitchers will hesitate to issue free passes to Soto with the most prolific home run hitter in the game on deck. He’ll surely take his walks, but in 2024, he could put up numbers we’ve never seen from him, which is saying a lot.
