Matt Shoemaker finishes second for Rookie of the Year

The American League Rookie of the Year Award was unanimously won by Chicago White Sox slugger Jose Abreu on Monday. He received all 30 first place votes and it was well deserved. Los Angeles Angels rookie right-hander Matt Shoemaker finished second with 40 points, 17 ahead of third place finisher Dellin Betances.

Matt Shoemaker had an unbelievable rookie campaign that no one saw coming. He set the rookie record for wins in club history with 16 and got better as the year went forward. If it is worth anything Jose Abreu faced Shoemaker three times in 2014, and struck out in each of his plate appearances.

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I can’t tell you that I didn’t expect this because I did. Jose Abreu should’ve been an MVP candidate for the rookie season he had in the windy city. Matt Shoemaker gave it a good run and earned himself some recognition on the national stage that was well deserved. Shoemaker finished his rookie season, 16-4, 3.04 ERA with a 5.17 strikeout to walk ratio.

I can’t say enough about the season that Shoemaker had in a Halo uniform and now he will be wearing it in Japan for the All-Star Series. A tremendous year for the 28-year old rookie that worked so hard to make it at this level. Congratulations to Matt on a fabulous season and now we look forward to another dominating campaign on the mound in 2015!