On Monday, Gary Sanchez, the Yankees’ rookie catcher, was named the American League Player of the Week—not especially surprising, given that he went 12-for-23 (.522) with three doubles, five homers, five walks, nine RBIs and seven runs scored in that span. But it was unprecedented, as it came on the heels of the 23-year-old backstop winning that same award the week before, making him the first rookie to earn those honors in consecutive weeks in either league since Player of the Week was established in 1974. Beyond that, Sanchez is the first AL player to win the award in consecutive weeks since Albert Belle did so in July 1998.
Amid historically hot start, Gary Sanchez enters Rookie of the Year race
