Photo by: Seattle Mariners
Former Bear Kyle Lewis Wins AL Rookie of the Year
11/9/2020 7:15:00 PM | Baseball
Lewis becomes the first Bear to win Rookie of the Year honors
MACON, Ga. – Former Mercer Bear Kyle Lewis has been named the Jackie Robinson American League Rookie of the Year award by a unanimous vote the MLB announced on Monday evening.
Lewis becomes just the fourth Georgia born player to win this prestigious honor and the second player from a Georgia university to win this honor. The last Georgia born player to win the award was Buster Posey (Leesburg, Ga.), while the only other collegiate player from a Georgia university was Nomar Garciaparra (Georgia Tech).
"We are extremely proud and happy for Kyle," remarked Head Coach Craig Gibson. "His contributions were a pivotal part of the Mariners success this season, and it has been a joy to watch. Kyle is an outstanding baseball player and even a better person. He is a great representative of Mercer, and I am glad to see him having success in the MLB. He is just starting to scratch the surface of his potential."
This marks the fourth time a Seattle player has been honored. The others were Alvin Davis in 1984, Kazuhiro Sasaki in 2000 and Ichiro Suzuki in 2001.
Lewis, who was the only player named on every ballot, is the seventh center fielder to win the AL award, joining Mike Trout, Carlos Beltran, Fred Lynn, Tommie Agee, Bob Allison and Albie Pearson. There have been eight center fielders who won in the NL.
The 25-year-old center fielder played in 58 games for the Mariners and became just the second rookie since 1969 -- joining the A's Mark McGwire in 1987 -- to lead his team in batting average (.262), home runs (11), runs (37) and walks (34). His FanGraphs WAR (1.7), runs, walks and total bases (90) led all AL rookies, and he finished second in hits (54) and RBIs (28) and fourth in stolen bases (five).
With his dynamic play, including some highlight-reel homer robberies at the wall, Lewis, a first-round pick in the 2016 MLB Draft, gave Seattle a spark, and he became the first Mariners player to win the Rookie of the Year honor since Ichiro Suzuki in 2001.
In his first at-bat of the 2020 campaign, Lewis, the 2016 winner of the Golden Spikes Award, hit a home run off Justin Verlander. The next night, he followed with an opposite-field home run. Late in the season, Lewis took a grand slam away from Ramon Laureano of the Oakland Athletics in a robbery that reminded Mariners fans of Ken Griffey Jr.
Lewis is the most decorated student-athlete in Mercer history. In June 2016, he won the Golden Spikes Award, given annually to the top amateur baseball player in the country. He also became the highest pick in Mercer and Southern Conference history, being selected 11th overall by the Mariners in the MLB Draft.
In his final year at Mercer, the Snellville native led the Bears to their second-consecutive SoCon regular-season title and a seventh-straight season with at least 35 wins. In addition to his 20 homers and 72 RBI, he ranked in the top-five nationally in walks (66), on-base percentage (.535) and runs (70) and in the top-15 nationally in batting average (.395). These numbers earned him recognition as a consensus All-America first-team selection, Baseball America National Player of the Year, American Baseball Coaches Association Player of the Year and Dick Howser Trophy semifinalist. He was also named the SoCon Player of the Year for the second straight season.
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For complete coverage of Mercer Baseball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBaseball (Twitter), /MercerBaseball (Facebook) and @Mercer.Baseball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
Lewis becomes just the fourth Georgia born player to win this prestigious honor and the second player from a Georgia university to win this honor. The last Georgia born player to win the award was Buster Posey (Leesburg, Ga.), while the only other collegiate player from a Georgia university was Nomar Garciaparra (Georgia Tech).
"We are extremely proud and happy for Kyle," remarked Head Coach Craig Gibson. "His contributions were a pivotal part of the Mariners success this season, and it has been a joy to watch. Kyle is an outstanding baseball player and even a better person. He is a great representative of Mercer, and I am glad to see him having success in the MLB. He is just starting to scratch the surface of his potential."
The other unanimous choices: Carlton Fisk, Mark McGwire, Sandy Alomar Jr., Tim Salmon, Derek Jeter, Nomar Garciaparra, Evan Longoria, Mike Trout, Jose Abreu, Aaron Judge and Yordan Alvarez. There have been 13 unanimous winners in the National League.☑ out the @KLew_5 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙪𝙢𝙚...
— Mercer Baseball (@MercerBaseball) November 9, 2020
𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟬 𝗔𝗟 𝗥𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿☑
2016 Golden Spikes Winner☑
2015 & 2016 SoCon Player of the Year☑
2016 ABCA/Rawlings National Player of the Year☑
2016 Baseball America Collegiate Player of the Year☑#WinnersWin | #ProBear pic.twitter.com/yqetZfv3Hs
This marks the fourth time a Seattle player has been honored. The others were Alvin Davis in 1984, Kazuhiro Sasaki in 2000 and Ichiro Suzuki in 2001.
Lewis, who was the only player named on every ballot, is the seventh center fielder to win the AL award, joining Mike Trout, Carlos Beltran, Fred Lynn, Tommie Agee, Bob Allison and Albie Pearson. There have been eight center fielders who won in the NL.
The 25-year-old center fielder played in 58 games for the Mariners and became just the second rookie since 1969 -- joining the A's Mark McGwire in 1987 -- to lead his team in batting average (.262), home runs (11), runs (37) and walks (34). His FanGraphs WAR (1.7), runs, walks and total bases (90) led all AL rookies, and he finished second in hits (54) and RBIs (28) and fourth in stolen bases (five).
With his dynamic play, including some highlight-reel homer robberies at the wall, Lewis, a first-round pick in the 2016 MLB Draft, gave Seattle a spark, and he became the first Mariners player to win the Rookie of the Year honor since Ichiro Suzuki in 2001.
In his first at-bat of the 2020 campaign, Lewis, the 2016 winner of the Golden Spikes Award, hit a home run off Justin Verlander. The next night, he followed with an opposite-field home run. Late in the season, Lewis took a grand slam away from Ramon Laureano of the Oakland Athletics in a robbery that reminded Mariners fans of Ken Griffey Jr.
Lewis is the most decorated student-athlete in Mercer history. In June 2016, he won the Golden Spikes Award, given annually to the top amateur baseball player in the country. He also became the highest pick in Mercer and Southern Conference history, being selected 11th overall by the Mariners in the MLB Draft.
In his final year at Mercer, the Snellville native led the Bears to their second-consecutive SoCon regular-season title and a seventh-straight season with at least 35 wins. In addition to his 20 homers and 72 RBI, he ranked in the top-five nationally in walks (66), on-base percentage (.535) and runs (70) and in the top-15 nationally in batting average (.395). These numbers earned him recognition as a consensus All-America first-team selection, Baseball America National Player of the Year, American Baseball Coaches Association Player of the Year and Dick Howser Trophy semifinalist. He was also named the SoCon Player of the Year for the second straight season.
Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Baseball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBaseball (Twitter), /MercerBaseball (Facebook) and @Mercer.Baseball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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