By Zane Miller
10. Bob Hamelin (1994)
Hamelin took the Rookie of the Year title in 1994 with the Kansas City Royals, smacking 24 home runs, 65 RBIs and 88 hits in 101 games played. Spending the majority of his MLB career in Kansas City, Hamelin contributed a total of 67 home runs, 209 RBIs and 313 hits in 497 career games before exiting the league after the 1998 season.
9. Pat Listach (1992)
Listach scored RotY honors in 1992 with the Milwaukee Brewers, as he had one home run, 47 RBIs and 168 hits in 149 games played. However, Listach would also have a relatively short MLB career, hitting five career home runs, 143 RBIs and 444 hits in 503 games mainly with the Brewers before playing his final game in 1997. In 2014, Listach was added to the Milwaukee Brewers Wall of Honor.
8. Ben Grieve (1998)
Grieve picked up the RotY trophy in 1998 with the Oakland Athletics, hitting 18 home runs, 89 RBIs and 168 hits in 155 games played. Grieve spent the majority of his MLB career split between the Athletics and Tampa Bay Devil Rays (now Tampa Bay Rays), earning a total of 118 home runs, 492 RBIs and 864 hits in 976 career games before playing his last MLB season in 2005.
7. Marty Cordova (1995)
Cordova scored RotY honors in 1995 while on the Minnesota Twins, nabbing an impressive 24 home runs, 84 RBIs and 142 hits in 137 games played. While Cordova spent most of his career with the Twins, including the 1996 season which saw him reach triple-digit RBIs, he would be plagued with numerous injuries which significantly shortened his career, as he retired after the 2003 season with 122 homers, 540 RBIs and 938 hits in just 952 career games.
6. Sandy Alomar Jr. (1990)
Alomar claimed the RotY title in 1990 with the Cleveland Indians (now Cleveland Guardians), capturing nine home runs, 66 RBIs and 129 hits in 132 games played, along with winning a Gold Glove Award. Alomar went on to have a lengthy career spent mostly with Cleveland, as he ended up with a total of 112 home runs, 588 RBIs and 1,236 hits in 1,377 games played before his 2007 retirement. Alomar was also inducted into the Cleveland Guardians Hall of Fame in 2009.
5. Nomar Garciaparra (1997)
Garciaparra took the 1997 RotY award with the Boston Red Sox on the strength of 30 home runs, 98 RBIs and an AL-leading 209 hits in 153 games played, claiming an eighth-place finish in MVP voting in the process. Garciaparra would have arguably his career-best season the next year, as he hit 35 homers, 122 RBIs and 195 hits in 143 games to finish second in the MVP race. Garciaparra continued to be one of Boston’s best hitters throughout the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, as he finished his career in 2009 with a total of 229 home runs, 936 RBIs and 1,747 hits in 1,434 games. In 2014, Garciaparra was inducted into the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame.
4. Tim Salmon (1993)
Salmon caught the RotY title in 1993 with the California (now Los Angeles) Angels, getting a whopping 31 home runs, 95 RBIs and 146 hits in 142 games played. Salmon also captured his career year with the team in 1995, earning 34 homers, 105 RBIs and 177 hits in 143 games. Salmon went on to play his entire career with the Angels organization, winning the World Series in 2002 while grabbing 299 home runs, 1,016 RBIs and 1,674 hits in 1,672 career games before retiring after the 2006 season. Salmon was inducted into the Los Angeles Angels Hall of Fame in 2015.
3. Carlos Beltran (1999)
Beltran secured the RotY award in 1999 with the Royals, mashing 22 home runs, 108 RBIs and a career-best 194 hits in 156 games played. Beltran spent the majority of his career between the Royals and New York Mets, with his tenure in the Big Apple seeing him get a career-high 41 home runs and 116 RBIs in 2006 to go along with 140 hits in 140 games played to finish fourth in that season’s NL MVP race. Beltran retired after winning the 2017 World Series with the Houston Astros, finishing with a total of 435 home runs, 1,587 RBIs and 2,725 hits in 2,586 career games.
2. Chuck Knoblauch (1991)
Knoblauch earned RotY in 1991 with the Minnesota Twins, getting one home run, 50 RBIs and 159 hits in 151 games, before going on to win the World Series in his rookie campaign. Despite playing most of his career with the Twins, Knoblauch would have his greatest postseason success with the New York Yankees. Throughout the team’s three consecutive World Series championships in 1998, 1999 and 2000, Knoblauch would be their starting second baseman and designated hitter, bringing his World Series ring total to four before retiring after the 2002 season with 98 home runs, 615 RBIs and 1,839 hits in 1,632 career games.
1. Derek Jeter (1996)
Jeter picked up Rookie of the Year honors in spectacular fashion with the Yankees in 1996, collecting 10 home runs, 78 RBIs and 183 hits in 157 games played, as he also won his first World Series in his rookie season. Jeter played his entire nearly two-decade long career with the Yankees, as his best statistical season in 1999 saw him get career highs with 24 home runs, 102 RBIs and 219 hits in 158 games. Jeter also finished second in MVP voting in 2006 while also taking a top-three spot in 1998 and 2009. However, his most noteworthy accomplishments would be his total of five World Series rings, as in addition to his rookie season he would win the title in 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2009 before announcing his retirement after the 2014 campaign, securing a total of 260 home runs, 1,311 RBIs and 3,465 hits in 2,747 games. Jeter’s #2 jersey was officially retired by the Yankees in 2017, the same year he joined the team’s Monument Park. Jeter also became a first-ballot inductee to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2020.
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