Oldest players to win Rookie of the Year

Through the 2021 season, 150 players have been named the Rookie of the Year. Of them, 17 have so far won the award at the beginning of a Hall of Fame career.

The average age of these players is just over 23, and only nine players have won during or after their age-27 season. They entered Major League Baseball from a variety of different backgrounds and often under a unique set of circumstances.

Some toiled away in the Minor Leagues to earn their spot. Others ventured to and returned from war before making the Majors. A few notable names earned their opportunities through years of experience playing across the globe. Many more had to break through racial barriers within their own country in order to find immeasurable success.

These are the nine oldest Rookie of the Year Award winners. Each is listed with his age in the season in which he won.

Sam Jethroe (age 33) -- 1950 NL (Boston Braves)

Three years after Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier, Jethroe joined the Boston Braves in 1950 and scored 100 runs on the way to being named National League Rookie of the Year. A dynamic force in the batter's box and on the basepaths, Jethroe stole 35 bases and slugged 18 home runs during each of his first two seasons with the Braves.

Jethroe joined the Boston club to break the city’s baseball color barrier at a time when just four other clubs had integrated. At age 37, he joined Curt Roberts on the Pittsburgh Pirates when they integrated their roster.

In total, Jethroe played 18 professional seasons from 1938-58 -- including parts of four in MLB, eight in the Triple-A International League and eight in the Negro American League.

Kazuhiro Sasaki (age 32) -- 2000 AL (Seattle Mariners)

After 10 seasons of playing professionally in his native Japan, Sasaki joined the Mariners ahead of their 2000 season and almost immediately secured the club’s closer role. Featuring a devastating split-finger fastball, Sasaki registered 37 saves across 40 opportunities and finished the game during 58 of his 63 appearances.

Sasaki represented the AL during two consecutive All-Star Game appearances, locking down the save to close the 2001 Midsummer Classic. He returned to his former club -- the Yokohama Bay Stars in Japan -- in 2004 to bookend his 16-year professional career.

Jackie Robinson (age 28) -- 1947 MLB (Brooklyn Dodgers)

The legendary Robinson was MLB’s first Rookie of the Year, and appropriately, the awards are now named in his honor. Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier in 1947 and proceeded to lead the NL with 29 stolen bases while hitting .297 and registering a career-high 125 runs in 151 games.

He finished fifth in the MVP voting as a rookie and went on to win the award in 1949. Robinson completed his decorated career with six All-Star Game appearances, a World Series title in 1955 and induction into the Hall of Fame in '62.

Joe Black (age 28) -- 1952 NL (Brooklyn Dodgers)

Another Negro League veteran who made his way to MLB as rosters integrated, the 28-year-old Black boasted a 15-4 record for the Brooklyn Dodgers while also converting all 15 of his save opportunities for the club (though saves didn't become an official stat until 1969).

Black finished third in the MVP voting that season, but he was unable to replicate his success going forward. The New Jersey native spent 14 seasons playing professionally, including seven seasons in the Negro Leagues prior to his MLB debut.

Jack Sanford (age 28) -- 1957 NL (Philadelphia Phillies)

Sanford signed his first contract at age 19 and proceeded to go 3-15 with as many runs allowed as innings pitched (140) in the Minors in 1948. Seven seasons later -- in October 1954 -- he was drafted into military service, having still not made his Major League debut.

The Phillies may have used their returning serviceman roster exemption to squeeze Sanford onto their roster in 1957, but given the chance, he certainly made the most of his opportunity. The Massachusetts native led MLB with 188 strikeouts in his first full season, recording a 19-8 record with 15 complete games and three shutouts. He was named an All-Star and finished 10th in the NL MVP voting.

Sanford finished second in the NL Cy Young Award voting to Hall of Famer Don Drysdale in 1962 and concluded his 12-year career in 1967.

Ichiro Suzuki (age 27) -- 2001 AL (Seattle Mariners)

For 28 seasons, Ichiro graced a professional baseball diamond with his presence. After nine years dominating the Japan Pacific League, he made the move to MLB and joined the Mariners as a high-profile test case of the Japanese posting system.

In his MLB debut, Ichiro led the AL with a .350 batting average and also led all hitters with 242 hits and 56 stolen bases across 157 games. He became just the second player all-time to win both the Rookie of the Year and MVP Awards in the same season and added both a Silver Slugger and Gold Glove to close his illustrious 2001 campaign.

Ichiro started his career under an international microscope and will now await his call from Cooperstown when he becomes Hall of Fame eligible on the 2025 ballot.

Harry Byrd (age 27) -- 1952 AL (Philadelphia Athletics)

Byrd broke into the big leagues in 1950, but he struggled mightily, then spent 1951 bickering with the front office during the season and working in a saw mill during the winter.

He returned to the diamond in 1952, and he proved to be an absolute workhorse for Philadelphia, going 15-15 with a 3.31 ERA across 28 starts and 37 total appearances. The South Carolina native posted 15 complete games and three shutouts while also adding two saves across three opportunities.

Byrd was involved in a 13-player trade to the Yankees and spent six more seasons in the AL before concluding his career with four years in the Minor Leagues.

José Abreu (age 27) -- 2014 AL (Chicago White Sox)

The White Sox signed Abreu to the largest contract in franchise history prior to the 2014 season, and yet the Cuban first baseman still exceeded expectations for the club after defecting from his home country.

Abreu led all hitters with a .581 slugging percentage and a 173 OPS+ in his first MLB season, was selected as an AL All-Star, finished fourth in the AL MVP voting and was named a Silver Slugger following his stateside debut.

He remains among one of the league’s best power hitters, won the AL MVP Award in 2020 and continues to serve as a driving force in a White Sox clubhouse full of Cuban talent.

Walt Dropo (age 27) -- 1950 AL (Boston Red Sox)

X marks the spot on the original concrete wall behind Birmingham’s Rickwood Field -- America's oldest active professional ballpark -- where in 1948 Dropo reportedly crushed a ball 467 feet and cemented himself as one of the country's top prospects.

Despite military service delaying his professional career, Dropo starred as a three-sport collegiate athlete who was courted by the NFL’s Chicago Bears and drafted by the Providence Steamrollers to play basketball before a 1947 tryout with the Boston Red Sox resulted in his signing as a professional baseball player.

A disappointing setback in 1949 meant Dropo’s 1950 season started in Triple-A; his three-sport athleticism ensured he ended the season as the AL Rookie of the Year. Dropo demolished Major League pitching that season, leading the AL with 326 total bases and leading all batters with 144 RBIs. He finished his first full season with the Red Sox sixth in the MVP voting and was named an AL All-Star.

An injury robbed Dropo of possible superstardom, but he nonetheless flashed enough talent to tie the pre-expansion MLB record of 12 consecutive hits as part of a 14-for-15 four-game stretch in 1952. He completed his 13-year MLB career with 152 home runs and 704 RBIs.