Kevin McGonigle, Sal Stewart Win 2026 Rookie of the Year Awards

On Monday night, the AL and NL winners of the 2026 Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year Award were announced. Detroit Tigers infielder Kevin McGonigle won in the American League, while Cincinnati Reds Slugger Sal Stewart claimed the prize in the National League.

A complete breakdown of the results can be found on the BBWAA website.

AL Rookie of the Year: Kevin McGonigle

Kevin McGonigle beat out Parker Messick and Payton Tolle after a superstar-level season. The 22-year-old received 28 of the 30 first-place votes, while Messick received the other two.

The debate between McGonigle and Messick was a lot closer than the vote count shows. Trying to compare a position player to a pitcher is tough (which is why the award should be split into one for a position player and one for a pitcher), and this is a prime example.

Messick, who also received votes for the AL Cy Young, put up a great season. Putting up a sub-2.60 ERA across 186.1 innings pitched is usually more than enough to win a Rookie of the Year. But unfortunately for the young southpaw, McGonigle had something to say about that.

McGonigle’s stats jump off the page in many different ways. For one, he led the American League with a 7.1 bWAR, which is rare for a rookie. He also showed the balance of his game with a .278 batting average, 18 home runs, and 12 stolen bases. In addition, he played 156 of 162 games as a rookie, again a very impressive feat.

With McGonigle also playing above-average defense at premier positions, there was no one that could have stopped him from winning this award. One stat I find absurd as well is that he had the second lowest chase percentage in the MLB. For a rookie, it’s hard to think that’s even possible. That describes the type of season McGonigle put up. 

Speaking after winning the award, McGonigle said: “It feels great… I don’t really know how to put it into words. I’m just super grateful for this season, and I went out and worked my butt off to play for this team and help this team win as much as I could… I just want to thank the coaches and my teammates, my family and my friend, and the community of Delaware County for all their support throughout this journey. It’s hard to put into words, and I am just super grateful and humble, and thankful for this.”

The infielder is the first Tigers player to win Rookie of the Year since Michael Fulmer in 2016. He is the most recent Tigers position player to win it since Lou Whitaker in 1978.

Kevin McGonigle signing his extension early in the season (eight years, 150 million) seems to have already worked out for the Tigers. He will now have the impossible task of following up such a historic season as a rookie. But McGonigle seems to be a superstar in the making and one of the young stars the Tigers will build their franchise around.

NL Rookie of the Year: Sal Stewart

Sal Stewart beat out Carson Benge and JJ Wetherholt in a very tight race. Stewart received 20 first-place votes, while Benge received seven and Wetherholt received three.

Throughout the season, this award race seemed to be the most competitive. At the beginning of the year, Wetherholt took a grip on the lead early, but injuries spudded any chance he really had. When he got injured, Stewart took over – Stewart’s bat, specifically. Then at the end of the season, Benge put up his best month while Stewart had a shaky finish.

Wetherholt and Benge both doubled Stewart’s output in terms of bWAR, with Wetherholt finishing at 4.5 and Benge at 4.3, while Stewart sat at 2.0. But the voters still chose to go with Sal, whose counting stats and his consistency of being on the field did all the talking.

Although he debuted in 2025, Stewart kept his rookie eligibility for 2026. He had 32 home runs and 112 runs batted in during his first full season – absurd stats for a rookie. I find it more impressive in a Reds lineup that was desperate for any sort of offense, and I wonder how much worse the Reds would have been if Stewart were not there.

To that point, Stewart also showed he had the ability of reliability to be able to play every single game this season. This could have been the difference in winning him the award. His counting stats just overwhelmed the other two finalists. 

Stewart shared his thoughts after winning the award: “I’m confident in who I am and confident in the work I put in and the people around me… I love to envision things. I felt like I could go out there, and I knew what I was capable of… my job was to just go out there, stay healthy and be me.”

He later went on to emphasize the importance of availability: “Being available to your teammates every single day… my teammates appreciate that. And I want them to know that I’m always there for them.”

Sal Stewart is the first Red to win Rookie of the Year since Jonathan India did it back in 2021. Stewart is now entering his sophomore season, and he has some questions to answer after the somewhat disappointing end to his rookie campaign. But Sal showed the ability to hit at such a young age, and showed he is someone a team can rely on, being there for them every game.