Bryson Stott Won't Get Rookie of the Year Votes, and That's Okay

Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Bryson Stott had a terrific rookie season, but his name is unlikely to show up on any Rookie of the Year ballots.

In recent years, the Baseball Writers' Association of America has begun announcing finalists for each of the four major awards. This means we know the top-three vote-getters for MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, and Manager of the Year well before the winners are announced. 

As a result, there seems to be a lot more conversation about down-ballot votes these days. Knowing the finalists so far in advance removes a great deal of suspense from conversations about the awards. Down-ballot votes give us something unknown to discuss while we wait for the final results. After all, there's usually a surprise or two among the eighth, ninth, and tenth-place votes on the MVP ballot, and most contending teams will be represented by at least a player or two.

When it comes to Rookie of the Year, however, down-ballot votes don't play nearly as important a role. Unlike the MVP ballot, which has ten slots, and the Cy Young ballot, which has five, the ROY ballot only has three slots. Voters pick a winner, a runner-up, and a third-place finisher. That doesn't always leave room for much variety in their choices.

In the National League, there were two standout rookies this season: Michael Harris II and Spencer Strider. One of them will be crowned Rookie of the Year. Every voter will have ranked them first and second on their ballots. Thus, the rest of the league's rookies were forced to duke it out for third-place votes.

Among those in contention were Brendan Donovan (the ultimate third finalist), his Cardinals teammate Lars Nootbar, Diamondbacks outfielder Jake McCarthy, Reds starting pitcher Nick Lodolo, and Nationals phenom Joey Meneses. Each one had an incredible season, and each one likely earned more consideration than Philadelphia Phillies rookie shortstop Bryson Stott

Were the ROY ballot ten players deep, or even five, Stott's chances of nabbing a down-ballot vote would have been much higher. As it stands, he is quite unlikely to have received a third-place vote. Perhaps that's a disappointment to Phillies fans who were hoping to see their team represented in voting for each of the BBWAA Awards, but in this case, there's no point in losing any sleep.

For one thing, awards like the ROY honor full-season performance. In the long run, however, development matters so much more than single-season stats. Stott grew, learned, and improved as a ballplayer throughout the season. Consider this: from June 25 through the end of the season, Stott was worth 1.9 FanGraphs WAR. ROY finalist Brendan Donovan, in comparison, was worth only 1.2 fWAR. Donovan may get the honor of being named a ROY finalist, but going into next season, the two are on similar ground. 

What's more, Stott already achieved so much this season. He doesn't need any down-ballot ROY votes to prove that. He established himself as a member of the Phillies core, and he helped the team go on a miraculous postseason run. In his very first MLB season, he was named a National League Champion. He made history along the way, as he and Jeremy Peña became the first pair of rookie shortstops to start in the same World Series game.

The NL Rookie of the Year winner will be announced in the evening of Monday, Nov. 14. The full voting results will be available on the BBWAA website. Bryson Stott is highly unlikely to be listed among the vote-getters – and that's more than okay.

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