Without a doubt, Spencer Strider and Michael Harris have been the best rookies in the National League in 2022. The pair have been instrumental in the success of the Braves since June 1st (52-20 in that time, the best record in the Majors). Spencer Strider is pitching to a 2.95 ERA in 100.2 innings with a 1.023 WHIP and 151 strikeouts. Not to be outdone, Michael Harris has delivered elite defense in centerfield while slashing .287/.325/.500 with a .825 OPS, 41 RBI, 15 stolen bases, and 12 home runs at the plate.
Cory McCartney joined Chris Goforth to discuss the two rookies and how the voters could possibly decide who should ultimately win the award for NL Rookie of the Year. On any given year, these two would be runaway favorites, but he suggested a potential workaround.
The two could (and should) share the award.
"We've seen awards be shared across Major League Baseball before," McCartney told Chris on Sunday morning. "We've seen co-MVPs in the National League with Willie Stargell and Keith Hernandez in 1979."
There's precedent in place for Major League Baseball to make such a move. In 1976, Butch Metzger and Pat Zachry shared the award, but then it happened again in 1979 when John Castino and Alfredo Griffin shared it.
The case is strong for this to potentially happen again in 2022 because of how close these two guys are in terms of their respective production.
"It's hard to really differentiate between these two," McCartney said. "Strider is passing Kerry Wood and his Ks per Nine record for a rookie from 1998. Michael Harris has held things down for the Braves in centerfield and has been a key point in the batting order for them."
Selecting between the two will be next to impossible. Harris is a favorite to win his first career Gold Glove and has been fantastic with his bat, but Spencer Strider has been downright dominant on the mound.
This would be an unusual occurrence, not only for there to be a shared Rookie of the Year but for them to come from the same team. On the other hand, these two players absolutely deserve this distinction. The defending World Series champions are in a position to repeat, but that would likely not be the case without their two rookies.
Both Michael Harris and Spencer Strider deserve to be named NL Rookie of the Year.