These players and managers just missed being BBWAA Awards finalists

The finalists for the Baseball Writers' Association of America end-of-season awards were revealed on Monday night. As it usually is, it's hard to limit each category to just three choices per league.

While every finalist for the Most Valuable Player, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year and Manager of the Year Awards is deserving, it's worth taking a look at one additional player (or manager) for each award who also deserves some recognition.

• Here are the finalists for the 2023 BBWAA Awards

The 2023 award winners for each league will be announced next week, starting at 6 p.m. ET on MLB Network each day:

Monday, Nov. 13: Jackie Robinson Rookies of the Year
Tuesday, Nov. 14: Managers of the Year
Wednesday, Nov. 15: Cy Young Awards
Thursday, Nov. 16: MVP Awards

While these guys won't win any of these respective awards, here are some players and managers who still had award-caliber seasons.

AL MVP

The finalists (in alphabetical order): Shohei Ohtani (Angels), Corey Seager (Rangers), Marcus Semien (Rangers)

But don't forget about: Julio Rodríguez (Mariners)

After a dazzling 2022 season that resulted in Rodríguez winning AL Rookie of the Year, the second-year star struggled at the plate out of the gate in '23. Through the All-Star break, the 22-year-old had a .721 OPS that was a far cry from his .853 OPS the year before. That script flipped in the second half, when Rodríguez went on a torrid 68-game stretch in which he hit .308/.363/.578 and homered 19 times while swiping 15 bases. That included a historic stretch in August when Rodríguez had an AL/NL record 17 hits over four games. At season's end, Rodríguez had a 128 OPS+, became the fourth player age 22 or younger to join the 30-30 club and had a 5.9 fWAR that was fourth in the AL behind only the MVP finalists.

NL MVP

The finalists (in alphabetical order): Ronald Acuña Jr. (Braves), Mookie Betts (Dodgers), Freddie Freeman (Dodgers)

But don't forget about: Matt Olson (Braves)

Olson had the unfortunate timing of bopping a Braves' single-season-record 54 home runs in the same year of the all-time performances from Acuña, Betts and Freeman. In any other season, the slugging first baseman would've assuredly been an MVP finalist with a real shot of winning the award. Olson drove in 139 runs in a dominant Braves lineup and produced the gaudy Statcast numbers to support his prodigious power -- with the lefty slugger finishing in the 96th percentile or better in expected wOBA, average exit velocity, barrel rate and hard-hit rate. Olson paired that power with 103 walks, third-most in the Majors behind only Juan Soto and Kyle Schwarber, while getting on base at a .389 clip.

AL Cy Young

The finalists (in alphabetical order): Gerrit Cole (Yankees), Kevin Gausman (Blue Jays), Sonny Gray (Twins)

But don't forget about: Pablo López (Twins)

López's 3.66 ERA is the likely reason why he didn't finish as a finalist but that doesn't fully capture just how great his 2023 season was. By every ERA indicator -- whether that's expected ERA (3.00) or FIP (3.33) -- López's underlying numbers suggested a guy pitching more like a frontline starter than someone who ranked 23rd in ERA for qualified starters. López's 234 strikeouts were tied with Blake Snell and trailed only Spencer Strider and Kevin Gausman while he threw the ninth-most innings (194) of any pitcher. The 27-year-old was a Statcast darling -- ranking near the top of every meaningful percentile ranking -- and showed just how good he was with two dominant postseason outings (one run allowed in 12 2/3 innings).

NL Cy Young

The finalists (in alphabetical order): Zac Gallen (D-backs), Blake Snell (Padres), Logan Webb (Giants)

But don't forget about: Spencer Strider (Braves)

Much of what was said about López also applies to Strider but in an even more extreme way. If you're weighing run prevention heavily, Strider's 3.86 ERA and 115 ERA+ hardly make him a worthy candidate. If you're into pretty much everything else -- mainly historic swing-and-miss stuff -- Strider is a viable top-five option. In his second full MLB season, Strider struck out a Braves modern-era-record 281 hitters with a 98th percentile whiff rate and 99th percentile strikeout rate. His slider produced the most strikeouts (139) of any individual pitch while his four-seamer (124) was tied for the third-most. Similarly to López, Strider's ERA indicators -- mainly his 3.09 xERA and 2.85 FIP -- suggested he was much better than his actual ERA, but that wasn't enough to make him a finalist.

AL Rookie of the Year

The finalists (in alphabetical order): Tanner Bibee (Guardians), Triston Casas (Red Sox), Gunnar Henderson (Orioles)

But don't forget about: Josh Jung (Rangers)

There were 11 AL rookies who finished with at least 2.0 fWAR, making it difficult to crunch the list to three finalists. Of the players on the outside looking in, it's Jung who boasted the most impressive rookie year. Since this is a regular-season award, it's not even including Jung's .867 OPS in the playoffs for the World Series-champion Rangers. Jung clubbed 23 home runs, played sparkling defense (+6 Outs Above Average) and was the AL starting third baseman in this year's All-Star Game. Were it not for a fractured thumb that limited him to 122 games, he might've hit 30+ home runs and been an easy finalist for this award.

NL Rookie of the Year

The finalists (in alphabetical order): Corbin Carroll (AZ), James Outman (LAD), Kodai Senga (NYM)

But don't forget about: Nolan Jones (COL)

Much like Olson for the NL MVP Award, Jones picked a tough year to produce a strong rookie season. By fWAR (3.7), Jones finished as the fourth-most-valuable rookie behind only Carroll (6.0), Henderson (4.6) and Outman (4.4). In what was viewed as a minor trade last offseason, the Rockies acquired Jones from the Guardians and immediately saw the rookie produce all-around excellence. The 25-year-old was just the 16th AL/NL rookie with a 20-20 season -- joined by Carroll and Anthony Volpe in '23 -- while leading the Majors with 19 outfield assists. It's an electric skillset, with Jones producing a 94th percentile barrel rate and owning the top outfield arm by Statcast's arm strength.

AL Manager of the Year

The finalists (in alphabetical order): Bruce Bochy (TEX), Kevin Cash (TB), Brandon Hyde (BAL)

But don't forget about: Rocco Baldelli (MIN)

With the caveat that the AL Central was the worst division in the Majors in '23, the Twins overcame obstacles to not only win the division but also snap an 18-game playoff losing streak and win their first playoff series since 2002. Despite Carlos Correa and Byron Buxton -- Minnesota's two best players entering the season -- combining for just 1.8 fWAR, the Twins saw a huge step forward from a pitching staff that was one of the best in the Majors. Baldelli seemed to optimize the most out of a team that rode its rotation and rookie-centric lineup to a strong season.

NL Manager of the Year

The finalists (in alphabetical order): Craig Counsell (MIL), Skip Schumaker (MIA), Brian Snitker (ATL)

But don't forget about: David Bell (CIN)

Outside of the World Series-champion Rangers -- who won 22 more regular-season games in 2023 compared to '22 -- no team increased their win total as much as the Reds (+20). With an 82-80 record, the Reds nearly snuck into the playoffs thanks to an influx of incredibly exciting and talented rookies. Elly De La Cruz, Matt McLain, Spencer Steer and Andrew Abbott played huge roles in Cincinnati playing competitive baseball, but Bell deserves a lot of credit. Juggling the duties of developing a young team and mitigating the issues of a pitching staff that had a 4.83 ERA while still almost making the playoffs was quite an accomplishment.