Merrill becomes latest rookie to win Silver Slugger Award

Merrill becomes latest rookie to win Silver Slugger Award

November 13th, 2024

We rarely see a player enter the Major Leagues and immediately establish himself as one of the very best hitters at his position. But it happened in 2024 with Padres rookie outfielder Jackson Merrill, who received a Silver Slugger Award on Tuesday night.

Only 16 rookies have earned a Silver Slugger since the award was established in 1980. Here is a look at how each of those players took home some hardware.

, OF, 2024 Padres
Merrill had to make a bigger adjustment to the big leagues than most rookies. At just 20 years old, he was named San Diego's Opening Day starter in center field, a position he never played in the Minors. But Merrill handled the switch from shortstop to center field adeptly and also handled Major League pitching at the plate. He paced all rookies in hits (162), extra-base hits (61), RBIs (90), batting average (.292) and slugging percentage (.500). He also had a knack for delivering in the big moment as six of his 24 home runs were game-tying or go-ahead dingers that came in the eighth inning or later.

, UTIL, 2023 Orioles
Henderson entered '23 as MLB Pipeline's No. 1 prospect. He got off to a sluggish start, but by the end of the year, it was fair to say he lived up to the hype. He batted .276 with an .856 OPS over his final 100 games. That stretch was highlighted by 23 home runs and 52 extra-base hits. Henderson finished the year with 100 runs scored and 274 total bases, both of which ranked inside the top 12 in the American League. Splitting his time almost evenly between third base (84 games) and shortstop (83 games), he was the first rookie to win a Silver Slugger as a utility player.

, OF, 2022 Mariners
Not only was J-Rod the third rookie to tally 25 homers and 25 steals, he was the first to hit those marks during his first year in the Majors. Rodríguez finished his age-21 season with 28 home runs, a .284 average and a 147 OPS+, which ranked fifth in the AL. His big year helped the Mariners reach the playoffs for the first time since 2001, ending what had been the longest active postseason absence in North American professional sports.

, OF, 2017 Yankees
Judge's display of raw power was unlike anything we had seen from an MLB rookie entering 2017. He clobbered a then-rookie-record 52 home runs -- and many of them were jaw-dropping blasts. Eighteen traveled a Statcast-projected 430 feet or more. Eight cleared 450 feet. His final home run soared 496 feet. Judge filled out his stat line with an AL-high 128 runs scored and 127 walks. He ranked second in the Junior Circuit in on-base percentage (.422) and slugging percentage (.627).

, SS, 2016 Dodgers
Glenn Wright of the 1930 Brooklyn Dodgers held the franchise record for home runs by a shortstop (22) for 85 years. In 2016, Seager surpassed him with 26 dingers as a rookie. Seager's 193 hits were second-most in the National League and the most by a Dodgers rookie since Buddy Hassett's 197 in 1936. Seager also finished inside the NL's top 10 in runs (105, fifth), doubles (40, seventh) and batting average (.308, seventh).

José Abreu, 1B, 2014 White Sox
Abreu's reputation as a formidable run producer followed him from Cuba to the White Sox. He pummeled Major League pitching immediately, bashing 10 home runs in his first full month with Chicago. He ended the year as one of only two players -- Victor Martinez being the other -- who produced at least 30 homers and a .300 average. Abreu's .581 slugging was the highest in big leagues, and his 173 OPS+ was the best in AL/NL history by any player in their debut season.

, OF, 2012 Angels
Trout is the best example of why we shouldn't give up on a talented prospect if their introduction to the Major Leagues is a rough one. Trout debuted in 2011 and batted .220 with a .671 OPS and five home runs in 40 games. Still a rookie in 2012, he was the best all-around player in the league. With 30 homers and 49 stolen bases, he became the first rookie to enjoy a 30-30 season, much less 30-40. No player in 2012 scored more runs than Trout's 129, and he sat among the AL's top three in batting average (.326), on-base percentage (.399) and slugging percentage (.564). Combined with his plus defense in the outfield, Trout became the first rookie to have a 10-WAR season.

, P, 2007 D-backs
A two-way star in college, Owings was serviceable on the mound in '07, compiling a 4.30 ERA over 27 starts and 152 2/3 innings. But he was essentially an All-Star when he stepped into the batter's box. He posted a .333/.349/.683 slash line across 64 plate appearances as a rookie. That slugging percentage is the highest by a primary pitcher in MLB history (minimum 50 plate appearances). Owings recorded four home runs and 15 RBIs on the season, and most of that production came in one game: a two-homer, six-RBI night against the Braves on Aug. 18.

, 3B, 2001 Cardinals
The 2000 season was Pujols' lone year in the Minors before coming to The Show. A 13th-round Draft pick in 1999, he played only three games above High-A, but by 2001, the Cardinals had seen enough. They anointed the 21-year-old as their Opening Day third baseman, thereby beginning the career of one of the game's greatest hitters. Pujols gave everyone a preview of what was to come by homering 14 times in his first 37 games. His rookie year included 37 homers, 130 RBIs, a .329 average and a 1.013 OPS. His 88 extra-base hits ranked sixth in MLB and were the most by a rookie since Joe DiMaggio did the same in 1936.

, OF, 2001 Mariners
While Pujols started his MLB career with relatively little pro experience, Ichiro arrived in 2001 after a storied nine-season run in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He won seven batting titles and three Most Valuable Player Awards in his home country. He did the same in his new home of Seattle right away. He hit an AL-best .350 and compiled a rookie-record 242 hits for the Mariners. It was the most hits by any player since Bill Terry had 254 hits for the 1930 New York Giants.

, SS, 1997 Red Sox
Like Ichiro, the baseball world quickly came to know Garciaparra on a first-name-only basis while he got hit after hit. His rookie season featured 68 multihit games, the most in the Majors. Nineteen of those games occurred while Nomar enjoyed a 30-game hitting streak from July 26-Aug. 29. He led the Junior Circuit with 209 hits but also flexed his muscle with 44 doubles and 30 home runs. Add in his 11 triples, and Garciaparra became the first player to enter the 30-homer, 40-double, 10-triple club since Stan Musial in 1949. Garciaparra was the second rookie to achieve that feat, following Red Sox legend Ted Williams in 1939.

, C, 1993 Dodgers
There were four rookie winners of the Silver Slugger Award from 1987-93, and they were all catchers. Piazza was the last member of that string. Five years after the Dodgers selected him in the 62nd round of the MLB Draft, Piazza registered 35 home runs, 112 RBIs and a .318 batting average, all of which were tops among qualified catchers. Piazza was the first catcher in 19 years to reach 300 total bases and remains the only one to do so as a rookie.

, C, 1989 Astros
Biggio was a five-time Silver Slugger Award winner and one of the most productive second basemen in MLB history. But he received his first Silver Slugger at catcher. He didn't become Houston's everyday catcher in '89 until early May, but over his final 120 games, Biggio collected 13 home runs and 20 steals to go with a .750 OPS. He finished ahead of all NL catchers with 64 runs, 36 extra-base hits and a 114 OPS+.

Matt Nokes, C, 1987 Tigers
Nokes played 11 seasons in the Majors, but his rookie year was his best by a wide margin. It was his only season with at least 500 plate appearances, and he made the best of that opportunity, producing a .289/.345/.536 slash line. His 32 home runs tied for the ninth-most in the AL and were the third-most by a rookie catcher at the time, trailing only the Braves' Earl Williams (33 in 1971) and the Tigers' Rudy York (35 in 1937). Piazza would tie this record six years later. Besides winning his only Silver Slugger, Nokes also made his lone All-Star appearance in '87.

, C, 1987 Padres
Two years before Biggio stole 21 bases as a rookie catcher, Santiago collected the same number of steals, which was the most by any rookie backstop in the Modern Era (since 1900). Late in the year, however, Santiago's bat was stealing headlines more than his speed. That's when Santiago embarked on a 34-game hitting streak, the longest by any rookie in MLB history. That run helped raise his average to .300 by the close of the season. Santiago also picked up 18 home runs, 33 doubles and 79 RBIs.

, P, 1981 Dodgers
All-Star. Cy Young winner. Rookie of the Year. World champion. Valenzuela earned just about every honor possible during his spectacular rookie campaign. That included the first Silver Slugger awarded to a rookie. He batted .250 with 16 hits, the most by a pitcher in '81. By the end of the regular season, the Dodgers' precocious left-hander was just 20 years and 338 days old, making him the youngest player to win a Silver Slugger, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.