Mike Bacsik has a bone to pick with the Baseball Writers Association of America after Texas Rangers outfielder Wyatt Langford wasn't among the three finalists for the 2024 American League Rookie of the Year award.
Among the finalists are New York Yankees pitcher Luis Gil, who is seen as the favorite to win the award. Baltimore Orioles outfielder Colton Cowser was also nominated, which Bacsik agrees was the right decision. And then there's Yankees catcher Austin Wells...
Wells, had a great season, but according to the stats, it pales in comparison to Wyatt Langford's numbers. Langford leads Wells in every single offensive category and WAR, but New York's backstop was still selected over the Rangers' slugger by the BBWAA. Lanford is also the only player to win AL Rookie of the Month honors twice this season and he won one AL Player of the Month award.
"This is a joke. This is an absolute joke, Major League Baseball," Bacsik said Tuesday on the K&C Masterpiece. "Next year, Rangers, change your jerseys to pinstripes and see if that helps. ... It's not right. It's not fair."
Why is it a huge deal that Langford was left out of the three finalists if he's not the favorite to win the award? In the 2022, MLB began awarding teams with players who finished in the top-3 in Rookie of the Year voting. The winner's club receives an extra pick at the end of the first round of the following year's MLB Draft, and the clubs with the runner up and second runner-up are awarded extra international bonus pool money to spend on international free agents.
That extra money could have come in handy in an offseason where the Rangers are chasing Japanese starting pitcher Roki Sasaki.