Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz and Braves catcher Drake Baldwin have been named the 2025 Rookies of the Year. Kurtz won the award unanimously following his monster debut season. In most other years, A’s shortstop Jacob Wilson or Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony would have taken home the hardware. They instead finished behind Kurtz. The National League class was stacked — Baldwin beat out the equally deserving Caleb Durbin (Brewers) and Cade Horton (Cubs).
No award gets you excited about the future the way Rookie of the Year does. It’s a young player being recognized for his greatness, and great young players are what sports hopes are built on. With that in mind, here’s a look ahead at the 2026 rookie class and, more importantly, who could be in the running for the 2026 Rookie of the Year awards.
MLB Rookie of the Year awards: Athletics’ Nick Kurtz takes home AL honors, Braves’ Drake Baldwin wins in NL
R.J. Anderson
American League
C Samuel Basallo, Orioles: The O’s believe so much in Basallo that they signed him to an eight-year, $67 million extension in August. The 21-year-old mostly struggled during his late-season cameo (.559 OPS in 31 games), though he’s already had two walk-off hits, and those 31 games were valuable experience. There’s something to be said for taking your lumps, learning what adjustments you have to make, and spending the offseason getting better. Basallo, who did not play enough to exhaust his rookie eligibility, figures to share catcher/DH duty with Adley Rutschman in 2026, which could equal more playing time than the typical rookie catcher. That won’t hurt his Rookie of the Year chances.
SS Kevin McGonigle, Tigers: Arguably the best prospect in baseball, McGonigle slashed .305/.408/.583 with 19 home runs and more walks (59) than strikeouts (46) across three minor league levels in 2025. He has yet to reach Triple-A and the lack of minor-league seasoning could work against him, but teams increasingly view Triple-A as a pit stop more than a level to spend a full season for development. The shortstop position is wide open in Detroit. McGonigle may not make his MLB debut until June or July, though he wouldn’t be the first Rookie of the Year winner to play only half a season in the big leagues, or thereabouts.
RHP Trey Yesavage, Blue Jays: Baseball fans are already more than familiar with Yesavage given his postseason heroics. He made only three regular-season starts, however, and postseason play does not count toward rookie status, so Yesavage is still eligible for next year’s Rookie of the Year award. We’ve already seen how good he can be on the game’s biggest stage, and he’ll have the added advantage of not having to compete for a big-league job in spring training. We already know Yesavage will break camp in Toronto’s rotation. There’s a long way to go between now and then, but given what we know right now, Yesavage has to be considered the 2026 Rookie of the Year frontrunner.
National League
RHP Bubba Chandler, Pirates: The Pirates slow-played Chandler’s development this season, so much so that he admitted he was