After winning Players Choice rookie award, Orioles’ Cowser sets sights on AL Rookie of the Year

Orioles outfielder Colton Cowser was voted the American League’s Outstanding Rookie in the Players Choice Awards. Now, Cowser will turn his attention to the more widely followed Rookie of the Year Award voted on by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. Those results will be announced next month.

Unlike last year, when Brandon Hyde was overwhelmingly voted the American League Manager of the Year, Cowser has the best chance of any Oriole of winning a major award.

Last year, Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson was the unanimous choice for AL Rookie of the Year. Cowser has a decent shot in a class that’s not as strong as last year’s, but it’s not going to be a unanimous vote.

Henderson was the first Oriole rookie to win the award since Gregg Olson in 1989. If Cowser wins it, the Orioles will have consecutive Rookie of the Year winners for the first time in their history.

Not since the late Mike Flanagan and Steve Stone won the American League Cy Young Award in 1979 and 1980 have the Orioles had consecutive award winners.

While not a BBWAA Award, the Gold Glove winners will be announced on November 3^rd at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN. Cowser is a finalist for left field and Ryan Mountcastle at first base. Ramón Urías won the Gold Glove at third base in 2022.

Let’s look at Cowser’s case for Rookie of the Year and his main competition. The 30 ballots had to be turned in before postseason play began.

The case for Cowser

After hitting just .115 (7-for-75) in his first try in the major leagues in 2023, Cowser played in 153 games, behind only Henderson’s 159 and Anthony Santander’s 155.

He hit only .242, but his .768 OPS was fourth on the team behind Henderson, Santander and Jordan Westburg.

Cowser’s 24 home runs trailed only Santander and Henderson, and his 69 RBIs was fourth behind Santander, Henderson and Adley Rutschman.

Though he struck out a team-leading 172 times, Cowser walked 52 times and was hit by a pitch seven times for a .321 on-base percentage behind only Henderson and Ryan O’Hearn.

Cowser stole nine bases, fourth-most on the Orioles behind Cedric Mullins, Gunnar Henderson and Jorge Mateo.

He had a 3.1 WAR (Wins Above Replacement), and defense was recognized around the league.

Wilyer Abreu

The Red Sox outfielder had the best WAR of all American League Rookies, according to BaseballReference.com, 3.5. Abreu played only 132 games and hit .253 with a .781 OPS.

If you prefer the FanGraphs version of WAR, Cowser had a 4.0 and Abreu 3.1

Abreu had 15 home runs and 58 RBIs, and played on a team that didn’t qualify for the postseason. Boston finished 81-81.

His defensive metrics were stronger than Cowser’s, according to BaseballReference. Abreu had a 1.4 while Cowser was -.1

Luis Gil

The Yankees’ right-hander also had a 3.1 WAR. He was 15-7 with a 3.50 ERA. Gil appeared to be the sure winner near the All-Star break when he had a 9-1 record and 2.03 ERA.

On June 20^th, he allowed seven runs on nine hits in just 1 1/3 innings in a 17-5 loss to the Orioles.

On May 3^rd, Gil pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings, giving up just two hits at Oriole Park, and after losing four straight, Gil gave up one run on five hits in six innings against the Orioles on July 13^th.

Gil had a 4.20 ERA in 10 second-half starts, and his 77 walks, which equates to 4.6 per nine innings, led the majors.

Austin Wells

The Yankees’ catcher gets high marks defensively. Wells had a 3.4 WAR in FanGraphs and a 2.5 WAR with a 1.2 defensive WAR, according to BaseballReference. He threw out 26 percent of runners attempting to steal, four points higher than league average.

Wells hit just .229 with a .718 OPS but had 13 home runs and 55 RBIs. His most impressive offensive stat was his .322 on-base percentage, nearly 100 points higher than his batting average.

Mason Miller

The Oakland Athletics closer has the wow factor. Miller threw a 103.6 mph pitch in the All-Star Game, the fastest since the pitch-tracking era began

He struck out 104 of his 249 hitters, striking out 14.4 batters per nine innings.

Miller suffered a broken pinky in July, and as a result, pitched in 55 games. He was 2-2 with a 2.49 ERA and 28 saves in 31 chances but seemed to wear down late in the season. Miller had a 4.15 ERA in 11 September games.

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