SportsFullCircle

There is still a month and a half of baseball left, but it is clear that Chicago White Sox third baseman Gordon Beckham is the front-runner for the American League Rookie of the Year award.

Let’s compare Beckham’s stats to those of other rookies in the league.

Batting average (1st): Beckham so far is batting .305. The next closest rookie in the American League is Brett Gardner, who is batting .030 points lower at the .275 mark.

Runs Batted In (1st): Beckham has driven in 43 runs.  The next closest rookie is Nolan Reimold, who has 32 RBI, though he played in eight more games than Beckham.

Extra Base Hits (1st): Beckham has 27 hits of the extra-base variety. The next closest rookie is Luis Valbeuna, with 25 extra base hits.

On-Base Percentage (1st): Beckham has a .374 on-base percentage, while the next closest rookie is Nolan Reimold, at the .366 mark.

Slugging Percentage (1st): Beckham is slugging at the .480 mark. The next closest rookie is Nolan Reimold at the .440 mark.

So it’s pretty impressive that Gordon Beckham is leading all rookies in these categories, while only playing in 63 games. He’s kept the White Sox in the playoff discussion in the American League Central with his bat, youth, and speed.

His defense is also improving. People will point to his horrible fielding percentage, but remember, he’s playing 3B for the first time ever. It’s hard to adjust to a new position when the first time you play it is in Major League Baseball. He’s also made as many good plays, if not more, than errors.

So to me, it’s only a tossup between Gordon Beckham and A’s closer Andrew Bailey for the American League Rookie of the Year award.  But with all the statistics listed above, I think it’s clear that Beckham should be the winner.