Lowe finishes third in AL Rookie of Year voting

ST. PETERSBURG -- Brandon Lowe had played just 43 games in the Majors when the Rays felt confident enough to sign him to a six-year, $24 million extension on March 20. Because of the small sample size, there was some skepticism when the two sides struck the deal, and there were still some questions where Lowe would play defensively.

Lowe, however, wasted no time to eliminate those doubts, finishing third in the American League Rookie of the Year voting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America in balloting announced Monday night on MLB Network. Lowe finished behind Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez, who unanimously won the award, and Orioles starter John Means who finished second. Lowe received six second-place votes and nine third-place votes.

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"It's pretty incredible. Just an honor even to be nominated," Lowe said last week. "It was definitely disappointing having that first injury right when I thought everything was going to clear up and go well at the plate, and the hindsight of looking back and seeing what numbers could've been, but there's a plan bigger than my own."

Injuries limited Lowe to 82 games and only five in the second half of the season, ultimately hampering his bid at winning the award. He was held out for months after a freak play in which he fouled a pitch off his right shin resulting in a deep bone bruise, and a left quad strain that he suffered during a rehab assignment in August seemed to have ended his season.

• Here are the Rookie of the Year vote totals

But Lowe, who battled injuries throughout his college career at the University of Maryland, focused on getting back on the field in order to help the Rays in the postseason.

"Right when it happened, the doctors kind of gave us a timetable," Lowe said. "With the injuries that I've had in the past, I've always looked at the doctors timetables as something I try and beat and come back quicker and stronger than what they've thought."

While Lowe fell short of winning the Rookie of the Year Award, 2019 proved to be a very successful season for the Rays' infielder. Lowe was a key part of Tampa Bay's lineup in the first half of the season, and his defensive versatility also proved to be vital to the team's success. Lowe played most of his time at second base, but he also started five games at first base and five others in the outfield.

The 25-year old also showed off his ability at the plate during his rookie campaign. He hit 17 home runs, ended the year with a 124 OPS+, which was second on the team behind Austin Meadows' 143, and finished fifth with a 2.9 bWAR in just 82 games. His first half performance earned him his first career All-Star selection.

"He hits a lot," Rays manager Kevin Cash said of Lowe in March. "He can really hit."

Lowe became the first Rays rookie to finish in the top three since Wil Myers won the award in 2013 and Chris Archer, who finished third in the voting that season.

The Rays still have two more opportunities to collect hardware this offseason, as Kevin Cash is a finalist for the AL Manager of the Year Award, which will be announced on Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET on MLB Network. And Charlie Morton is in the running for the Cy Young Award, which will be announced on Wednesday.