Devin Williams named as finalist for NL Rookie of the Year

Milwaukee Brewers reliever Devin Williams is one of three finalists for Rookie of the Year. He's going up against Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm and Sand Diego Padres infielder Jake Cronenworth. The winner will be announced on Monday, Nov. 9 at 5 p.m.

Williams, a former top Brewers draft pick, has already secured one major award, winning Reliever of the Year. If he wins Rookie of the Year, he’ll be the first reliever to claim the award since Craig Kimbrel in 2011 with the Atlanta Braves.

The young reliever was historically good, despite a shortened 2020 season. In 27 inning pitched, he allowed only one run, struck out 53 while only walking nine, and allowed only eight hits. With that line, he amassed a 1.2 bWAR.

Alec Bohm played in 44 games for the Phillies. He slashed .338/.400/.481 with four homers while playing predominantly third base. His season was only good enough for a 0.7 bWAR. Jake Cronenworth appeared in 54 games and hit .285/.354/.477 to go with four homers of his own. Combined with a versatile infield defense, Baseball Reference put his bWAR at 1.4, a smidge ahead of Williams.

The last Brewers player to win Rookie of the Year was Ryan Braun 13 years ago. A Brewer hasn’t even shown up in the voting since 2012, when Nori Aoki got 11 points.