A star is born in Seattle.
Outfielder Kyle Lewis, whose combination of power, speed and excellent defense provided a much-needed source of optimism for Mariners fans, was named the American League Rookie of Year on Monday following a unanimous vote by the Baseball Writers Association of America. He’s the first Mariners player to win the award since Ichiro Suzuki in 2001 and the franchise’s fourth winner overall. Amazingly, that list doesn’t include Ken Griffey Jr.
Lewis received all 30 first-place votes to beat out Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert and Houston Astros pitcher Cristian Javier.