On Friday, two Yankees players, Aaron Judge and Clay Holmes were honored for their outstanding May performances. They were selected as American League Player and Reliever of the Month, respectively. Paul Goldschmidt of the Cardinals and David Bednar of the Pirates were named National League Player beside Aaron Judge.
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In a contract year, Judge crushed 12 home runs while hitting.311 with a 1.077 OPS in May to establish an early MVP (checkout the MLB MVP Odds) case. In May, Judge tied Mookie Betts of the Dodgers for the most home runs, and his OPS and 25 RBI stood second in the American League behind Betts’s.
Judge has the best slugging percentage in the majors at.659 with 19 home runs.
Since Aroldis Chapman’s struggles and subsequent injury placed him in the closer’s role in New York, Holmes has thrived in the role. In May, Holmes went 14 innings. He didn’t allow a single run, added 15 strikeouts, zero walks, four saves, and a 3-0 record.
Besides Judge, St Louis Cardinals’ first baseman Paul Goldschmidt was also named the National League’s top player. He played in 27 games during the previous month and had a batting line of.404/.471/.817 with 10 home runs, 33 RBIs, and 20 runs scored. Goldschmidt established a new Cardinals record for May with 23 hits for extra bases.
Pitchers of the Month
In May, Martin Perez of the Texas Rangers was the American League’s best pitcher. Perez, who won this award for the first time, went 4-0 with a fantastic 0.64 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 33 strikeouts, and zero home runs allowed over 42 1/3 innings to continue his stunning rebirth.
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When Perez made his sixth and final May start against the Houston Astros on May 20, he pitched a complete-game shutout and didn’t allow any runs.
Right-hander Zack Wheeler of the Philadelphia Phillies was named Pitcher of the Month for the Senior Circuit. Despite his team’s struggles, he had a 1.65 ERA and 1.01 WHIP with 40 strikeouts and only five walks in 32 2/3 innings. Since Cliff Lee received the honor in August 2011, he’s the only Phillies pitcher to receive it again.
Rookies of the Month
Despite a sluggish start, a 21-year-old Seattle Mariners center fielder Julio Rodriguez emerged triumphant in the Junior Circuit’s annual rookie awards in May. Rodriguez, the majors’ leading stealer, hit.309/.339/.527 in 28 games last month, along with six home runs, 17 RBIs, 12 runs scored, and five steals.
Besides Rodriguez, San Fransisco Giants outfielder Luis Gonzalez was also named the NL’s top rookie of the month. In 23 games with the San Francisco Giants across 23 games, the 26-year-old hit.368/.410/.500 with eight extra-base hits, 13 RBIs, and three stolen bases.
Relievers of the Month
This month’s AL Reliever of the Month award was given to Yankees closer Holmes, who has emerged as an excellent bullpen arm in recent weeks. Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander David Bednar is also one of the team’s few bright spots this season. He was also named as the NL’s top reliever for May.
Throughout 16 1/3 innings pitched last month, Bednar recorded seven saves, 21 strikeouts, and a WHIP of 0.74 while limiting opposition batters to a miserable.170/.197/.288 batting line.