J-Rod, Strider lead latest ROY poll

It's time for MLB.com's third Rookie of the Year Award poll of the season.

In the American League, one rookie sensation has taken a commanding lead -- but in the National League, there's a new No. 1.

Voters were asked to rank their top five Rookie of the Year candidates in each league based on what's happened so far and what they expect will happen over the rest of the 2022 season. Rookies received vote points on a 5-4-3-2-1 scale -- five points for a first-place vote, four points for a second-place vote and so on, with 46 voters participating. Here are the results.

(All stats entering Thursday.)

AMERICAN LEAGUE

1. Julio Rodríguez, Mariners (45 first-place votes)
DraftKings Rookie of the Year odds: 2.85-1
J-Rod is now the overwhelming favorite for AL Rookie of the Year. Rodríguez received all but one first-place vote from the MLB.com voters. The 21-year-old center fielder was the leader in the last Rookie of the Year poll, too, but Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña actually received slightly more first-place votes. Not this time. Rodríguez is batting .277 with 15 home runs and an American League-leading 21 stolen bases this season.

2. Jeremy Peña, Astros
DraftKings odds: 4.5-1
Peña remains in the second-place spot in the AL for another poll, although he didn't get any first-place votes this time after receiving 23 in the last poll. But Carlos Correa's replacement at shortstop in Houston is having an excellent season. The 24-year-old is batting .270 with 12 home runs and 31 RBIs for the AL West leaders.

3. Bobby Witt Jr., Royals
DraftKings odds: 14-1
Witt Jr. is starting to show the elite tools that made him the No. 1 overall prospect in baseball. The 22-year-old has 12 home runs and 12 stolen bases this season and leads the Majors with five triples. Witt and Rodríguez were both preseason top-three overall prospects, which could make for an interesting Rookie of the Year race between them. Witt stays in the No. 3 spot for a second straight poll.

4. Joe Ryan, Twins
DraftKings odds: 40-1
Ryan also occupies the same spot in this Rookie of the Year poll as he did in the last one, which means the top four AL rookies are all the same. The Twins' 26-year-old right-hander is now 6-3 with a 3.09 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 13 starts this season for the AL Central leaders.

5. Adley Rutschman, Orioles
DraftKings odds: 30-1
Rutschman is back in the top five after just missing out in the last Rookie of the Year poll. The 2019 No. 1 overall Draft pick is batting .263 with three homers, 11 doubles, a .513 slugging percentage and an .842 OPS over his last 22 games going back to June 10.

Others receiving votes: Riley Greene (1 first-place vote), Steven Kwan, Jhoan Duran, George Kirby, Félix Bautista, MJ Melendez, Jake Burger, Brock Burke, Penn Murfee, Shane Baz, Alex Faedo

NATIONAL LEAGUE

1. Spencer Strider, Braves (21 first-place votes)
DraftKings odds: 3-1
Strider is the No. 1 NL Rookie of the Year candidate for the first time this season. The flamethrowing right-hander takes over from another rookie pitcher, Padres lefty MacKenzie Gore, who led each of the first two polls. Strider moves up from third to first after receiving nearly half of the first-place votes, and more than three times as many as any other player in a divided NL race. The 23-year-old is 4-2 with a 2.87 ERA and 90 strikeouts this season, and has kept rolling after moving from the bullpen to the starting rotation at the end of May.

2. MacKenzie Gore, Padres (6 first-place votes)
DraftKings odds: 7.5-1
Gore is still the next-best NL Rookie of the Year contender in the eyes of MLB.com voters. The 23-year-old southpaw is 4-3 with a 3.18 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 13 games this season, and he just threw 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball in San Diego's win over the rival Dodgers in his last start. Gore and Strider mean the NL Rookie of the Year race is all about pitching right now.

3. Michael Harris II, Braves (5 first-place votes)
DraftKings odds: 3-1
Harris has come on strong for the Braves since making his MLB debut on May 28 and taking over in center field. As Atlanta tries to catch the rival Mets in the NL East, the 21-year-old Harris is batting .293 with five home runs, six stolen bases and a 121 OPS+ in 37 games. He breaks into the top five of the Rookie of the Year poll for the first time.

4. Brendan Donovan, Cardinals (3 first-place votes)
DraftKings odds: 17-1
Donovan drops a little in the latest poll, from No. 2 to No. 4, but the Cardinals rookie has also gotten at least one first-place vote in every poll so far. The versatile 25-year-old, who's played every infield position and both corner outfield positions this season, is batting .293 with a .403 on-base percentage and 135 OPS+.

5. Oneil Cruz, Pirates (6 first-place votes)
DraftKings odds: 4.5-1
The Pirates' No. 2 prospect has already made an impact since being called up for his season debut on June 20, with three home runs in his first 16 games of 2022. Cruz is showing the potential to be a big power-speed threat, and after receiving only a few votes in the first two NL Rookie of the Year polls, the 6-foot-7 shortstop is in the top five for the first time.

Others receiving votes: Juan Yepez (2 first-place votes), Christopher Morel (2 first-place votes), Seiya Suzuki, Nolan Gorman (1 first-place vote), Jack Suwinski, Luis González, Alek Thomas, Hunter Greene, Andre Pallante, Alexis Díaz