2026 AL Rookie of the Year Should Come From the AL Central

With the start of the MLB season comes a flurry of fresh faces. Friday sees Just Baseball’s No. 1-ranked prospect Konnor Griffin debuting for the Pirates. No. 8 Samuel Basallo contributed to the first walk-off ABS challenge Wednesday.

But this is not about those prospects. With so many rookies to sort through, it’s hard to deny the potential of the AL Central when it comes to the AL Rookie of the Year race. There are four candidates who each make a very strong case.

Through the first week of the season, no AL Central team in its entirety has looked that strong. The Cleveland Guardians stand in first at just 4-3 after their first seven games, but this leaves plenty of room for these rookies to help their teams to a potential division title.

In fact, as it currently stands, the AL Central has four of the top five favorites to win 2026 AL Rookie of the Year, according to BetMGM.

This begs a few questions. Who are these rookies, and why do they have a case to be this year’s AL Rookie of the Year? Without further ado, here are the AL Central candidates.

Stats were taken prior to play on April 3.

Chase DeLauter (Just Baseball No. 20)

After a spring training performance that saw DeLauter post a 1.373 OPS, the Cleveland Guardians seemingly had no choice but to start the rookie from day one. And so far? He’s hardly missed a beat.

In his six games for the Guardians, DeLauter has six hits, which may not jump off the page. That is, until you realize that four of them left the yard.

When it comes to DeLauter’s ROY odds, the question on everyone’s mind is whether this production is sustainable. And as the baseball writer who familiarizes himself with the advanced metrics, I have come to a conclusion: I don’t know.

This is simply because DeLauter has never completed a full season quite like the 162-game MLB slog. In fact, dating back to DeLauter’s college days, he has never played more than 60 games in a season.

He’s flashed this level of power in small samples and against elite competition, but whether his body holds up remains to be seen.

There is an early injury concern for DeLauter as well, as he exited Tuesday’s game after fouling a ball off his left ankle. X-rays came back negative, though, but this left foot is a concern for DeLauter, who has undergone surgery on it in 2022 and 2023.

Still, there’s no denying what the 24-year-old is capable of when he’s on the field.

Munetaka Murakami (Unranked)

The baseball world has been waiting with anticipation for years to see Murakami make his MLB debut. And so far, he has not disappointed.

The Japanese home run champ, who broke the record with 56 home runs in 2022, has already managed three in his first six MLB games. Combine that with a pair of singles and Murakami has an OPS north of 1.000.

The major concern for Murakami remains the swing-and-miss numbers. It’s an accepted fact for many that more home runs come with more strikeouts, but Murakami was always a bit more concerning.

In these six games, Murakami has nine strikeouts to his name, accounting for over a third of his total plate appearances.

There is often an adjustment for overseas players who jump straight into the MLB. Pitch speeds are faster, and this can generate additional swing-and-miss, especially on fastballs. Murakami has long struggled with strikeouts, and he’ll need to be especially diligent to maintain this level of performance.

If the Chicago White Sox can corral this aspect of Murakami’s game, there’s a real chance that the South Side has a 40-home-run threat who could win AL ROY.

Kevin McGonigle (Just Baseball No. 2)

Before the announcement of Konnor Griffin’s call-up, the world had its eyes on McGonigle, who entered 2026 with the most prospect pedigree of any major-league rookie.

McGonigle’s power numbers may not be as prolific as Murakami or DeLauter, but he easily has the best hit tool of the three. Additionally, McGonigle has an incredible track record of disciplined plate appearances. He walked more than he struck out at every level of the minor leagues.

McGonigle is fit to play all over the infield and is likely the most well-rounded of all four of these players. With this positional versatility, he should get a chance to play every day for the Detroit Tigers, and make the most of every opportunity to make a bid for AL Rookie of the Year.

Should McGonigle reach his ceiling, he could run away with this award, and perhaps several more awards in the years to come.

Carter Jensen (Just Baseball No. 13)

While the recent headlines around Jensen focused on him being benched after oversleeping, his skills behind the dish were never in question.

Jensen’s 2-for-16 batting average through five games indicates a poor start to the season, although he performed much better in a cup of coffee last season. In 2025, Jensen had a .941 OPS in 20 games down the stretch.

As a young catcher, however, adjusting to a new roster of pitchers is often the toughest challenge. When learning so much about defense at the big-league level, it’s also reasonable to give Jensen some grace while he takes a few series to adjust. Any strides he can make as a defender could certainly help his ROY case as the season progresses.

As far as Jensen’s ceiling goes, the sky’s the limit. Scouts had his hit tool and fielding tool as a little weak in comparison to his power and discipline. Alas, Jensen will look to grow in these traits as the season goes on.

In the meantime, only one week has gone. Fans still don’t know who exactly will be eligible for Rookie of the Year voting. Jensen has been a consistent presence for the Kansas City Royals so far, and with Salvador Perez close to an eventual retirement, fans will be seeing a lot of Jensen for years to come.