Royals fans saw that type of talent during the final month of the season. Rays: Ryan Yarbrough, LHPThe Rays, famously, dont quite ask as much out of their starting pitchers as a lot of other teams do, but, all told, they do ask for more than a 5.11 ERA. The whole time I just wanted to be healthy long-term and live a long life. He may be leading off this year, so a step forward would be handy. Even if he misses that deadline, hes a heavy favorite for Comeback Player of the Year honors after sitting out all of '20 to undergo chemotherapy treatment. Now that hes had a taste of the playoffs and the chance to watch Bauer work up close, Castillo could give Cincinnati two Cy Young winners in a row next season. He had trouble with walks, but he also only struck out six batters per nine innings -- far, far below what he was doing in the Minors. Granted, deGrom's rate could go up in smoke with one sloppy game, but it's stunning he has made it this far into the season with such a ratio. NL Comeback Player of the Year 1 of 13 Stephen Strasburg Associated Press Fenn: Mike Soroka, Atlanta Braves Soroka is on track to return as early as mid-April after tearing his Achilles last. Below, we look at the odds to be named the 2021 Comeback Player of the Year, with NFL picks, predictions and best bets. Orioles: Anthony Santander, OFSantander was a Rule 5 pick from Cleveland who was one of the happy stories of the Orioles 2020 season -- a year in which the Orioles were in second place a third of the way through the season! Can Kenta Maeda repeat his career-best, Cy Young caliber season? The Orioles' Trey Mancini and the Giants' Buster Posey were named MLB's Comeback Players of the Year for 2021 on Monday. Sign up to receive our daily Morning Lineup to stay in the know about the latest trending topics around Major League Baseball. The winners are determined by a vote of the 30 club beat reporters from MLB.com. It was as if he was laying his '21 manifesto: He will return to the form of five straight seasons from 2015-19 in which he finished with 37 or more homers and 110 or more RBIs. 9 overall prospect in baseball per MLB Pipeline and he figures to be a big part of the Mariners youthful makeover. Five months later, he was on the field again, receiving a standing ovation at the Orioles Spring Training complex in Sarasota, Fla. The 25-year-old dominated the shortened 2020 season, taking home the MLB pitching Triple Crown by topping all other pitchers in wins (eight), strikeouts (122) and ERA (1.63). Mancini is among many players poised to make a run at Comeback Player of the Year honors in 2021. In '20, Gallen picked up right where he left off as he set the Major League record for most consecutive starts with three or fewer earned runs allowed to open a career when he stretched his streak to 23. As a result, Prescott is the betting. In other words, the Mariners have won eight more games than they "should" have, thanks to a ton of success in close contests. He later became the first position player to record his first career hit in the postseason, and that ability came as no surprise considering the heralded hitting skills that some evaluators believe make him one of the best pure hitters in the Minor Leagues. Mets: Dominic Smith, 1B/OF In 2019 and 2020, Smith finally turned into the player of Mets fans dreams, getting on base regularly and showing considerable pop. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar). The White Sox (-115) have leapfrogged the Twins (+140) as pre-season Central favorites, and there are several key questions the Twinkies have heading into the 2021 campaign. As his 2020 season ended because of a left shoulder injury, Arenado fielded question after question about how the injury reduced his average to .253 -- with no extra-base hits after Sept. 9 and zero home runs after Sept. 8. He also has 19 doubles and three triples as part of a monstrous .698 slugging percentage. Betts showed throughout the postseason how he can impact games with every tool, from taking away home runs to scoring on contact plays with the infield in. Mancini missed all of the 2020 season as he underwent treatment for Stage 3 colon cancer, which he was diagnosed with in March of that year after a colonoscopy revealed a malignant tumor. Theyare 19-8 in one-run games and 10-1 in extra-inning games, boasting the best winning percentage in the majors in both of those categories. Because of MLB's rookie eligibility rules being prorated given the shortened 2020 season, many players you grew familiar with a year ago are still rookie eligible, making the pool of . The rebuilding Mariners believe they are posed to take a step forward this season and are hopeful the 29-year-old Haniger can spark their offense from the leadoff spot in the batting order. Also Considered: Alex Cora, Boston; Dusty Baker, Houston. For the most part, there was minimal debate. Offensively, I would have been there also. Dak Prescott (+200) 2. He is also still a bargain as his salary will be close to the major league minimum of $570,500 this season as he does not yet have the requisite service time to be eligible for salary arbitration. Listed below are the 2023 Odds to Win the American League and National League Cy Young awards. As Acua continues to combine his incredible power with good discipline, hell show why some consider him to be the games next Trout. Alcantaras four-seam fastball averaged 96.8 mph this year and his sinker sat at 96.2 mph. And Clayton Kershaw called Betts the best right fielder hes ever seen. If he can be that star we all think he is, he could usher in the next era of Mariners baseball. Still just 23 years old, the Astros believe Alvarez can be one of their key players for years to come. If the season ended today, though, many of the picks would be rather obvious. Can he finally hit both goals? He won four games in a row with a 1.26 ERA before dropping his final regular-season outing. JK Dobbins +1200. The 2021 Major League Baseball season is approximately 56 percent completed, which means there is a lot of time left for slumps, injuries and/or hot streaks to drastically change the current projections for the various major awards. Then, Darvish flipped an incredible switch. Until last year, it was much more of the former. He hit .208 in 62 games and never really got on track. NFL Comeback of the Year Odds Analysis. But there are plenty of opportunities to change that in 2021. Look at his slash line before he tweaked his back in late August in Atlanta: .343/.478/.714. From his leadership, accountability and unselfishness to his instinctive baseball IQ that shows itself mostly on the basepaths, which might be the greatest of all his skills. Acua's chase rate dropped from 24.0 percent to 20.1 percent and his walk rate rose from 10.6 percent to 18.8 percent, despite spending a majority of the season hitting directly in front of MVP Freddie Freeman. He barely saw the field in 2019. Guardians: Triston McKenzie, RHPHeading into last year, you wondered whether the lanky, powerful McKenzie was going to become the next Cleveland pitcher to come up through their system and turn himself into an ace. Hes got one more year on his Royals deal, and if this teams going to compete at all in this division, they need him making far more regular jaunts down to first base, one way or another. Through 15 starts in 2021, the two-time (soon to be three-time) NL Cy Young winner has yet to allow more than five baserunners in a game. There were times early on when I wasnt entirely sure Id be playing baseball again, Mancini said this spring. Had it not been for the pandemic eliminating the 2020 minor-league season, Rogers probably would have spent last year in either Double-A or Triple-A. Gallen had just two poor innings in '20 -- he allowed four runs in the sixth inning on Sept. 7 and four runs in the first inning on Sept. 12. Can Josh Donaldson stay healthy? Adalberto Mondesi, Royals. He remains an elite player and will be only 27 years old on Opening Day. Mancini missed the entire pandemic-shortened 2020 season after undergoing surgery for colon cancer. Well, Hendricks had his worst season last year (4.77 ERA), proving just how thin a margin for error he, and pitchers like him, have. NFL Comeback Player of the Year Odds 1. Rick Scuteri/USA Today Sports Mookie Betts has the next-best odds at +900 after slugging a career-high 35 home runs in 2022. He turns 27 on Nov. 19, so he is young enough to still have many great seasons ahead of him. His stats took a step back in '20, but that was for reasons largely out of his control: A coronavirus outbreak in the organization paused the Cardinals season and caused Flaherty to go more than three weeks without pitching. And during one three-game stretch in late May, the M's won three consecutive games saved by three different relievers. How can a guy hit 38 homers in 144 games in 2019 and then just hit nine in 127 two years later? was originally selected by the Bills in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. It . Mancini remains partnered with CCA, as well as cancer-free. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File). This was still one of the most promising starters in the game a couple of years ago. deGrom will turn 33 next June, still in the prime of his career without quite as much mileage on his arm as many pitchers his age. The D-backs acquired the right-hander from the Marlins at the 2019 Trade Deadline and he put up an ERA+ of 157 over eight starts down the stretch. He hit his first home run on April 10 in Baltimore, and on June 20 at Camden Yards, he hit the 100th home run of his career. Also Considered: Randy Arozarena, Tampa Bay. Not quite Cy Young numbers, but he's not far off from matching the current production of Shane Bieber,last year's AL Cy Young winner: 3.28 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 12.9 K/9. If you take away those two innings, his ERA would have been just 1.77. Theres no telling what the 21-year-old shortstops ceiling is. From 2016-2019, Mancini had a 162-game pace of 31 home runs, which is exactly where he's at this year with 16 dingers at the All-Star break. That also meant he didnt appear with the other qualifying pitchers as voters perused statistical leaderboards while filling out their ballots. The man mashed 10 home runs in 18 games during the 2020 postseason. Six different pitchers have tallied at least one save. Mets: Dominic Smith, 1B/OFIn 2019 and 2020, Smith finally turned into the player of Mets fans dreams, getting on base regularly and showing considerable pop. Ryu was excellent in his first season with the Blue Jays, posting a 2.69 ERA and finishing third in AL Cy Young voting behind only runner-up Kenta Maeda and winner Shane Bieber. Way back in February, Chapman arrived to Spring Training as a darkhorse candidate for the AL MVP Award. Royals: Carlos Santana, DHThe decision to bring in the veteran Santana last season felt like a savvy move for the Royals, a way to raise their floor with a long-underappreciated hitter and on-base guy. RB Christian McCaffrey, 49ers. Returning from a. 2021-22 - QB Joe Burrow (Cincinnati) 2020-21 - QB Alex Smith (Washington) 2019-20 - QB Ryan Tannehill (Tennessee) 2018-19 - QB Andrew Luck (Indianapolis) 2017-18 - WR Keenan Allen (L.A. Chargers) 2016-17 - WR Jordy Nelson (Green Bay) Giants catcher Buster Posey was this years National League recipient. He wouldnt spend 20 on the field. Four months ago, it wasn't even clear if Carlos Rodon would be a part of Chicago's 2021 starting rotation. Posey is now a two-time Comeback Player of the Year -- he also won the award in 2012 and is the only Giants player to win. The 22-year-old outfielder has finished within the top 12 in NL MVP balloting in each of his first three seasons and he is now primed to win this honor. Through 13 starts this season, he's sitting at 3.49, 1.21 and 11.7, respectively. This lineup is stacked now, but he could raise it even higher and hey, while hes at it, can he catch every ball in the field too? D-backs: Madison Bumgarner, LHPHe finally made a (mostly) full season of starts in 2021, but he still was barely a league average pitcher. Trey Mancini wins MLB Comeback Player of the Year Nick Shepkowski November 22, 2021 6:42 pm ET In a year that saw some incredible performances there was no easier Major League Baseball. Theres simply no way that his regular-season debut can match the stage and pressure of his first big league at-bat, when he not only became the first player to start in the postseason as his MLB debut since the World Series began in 1903, but he also stepped to the plate for the first time with two outs and the bases loaded in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series against Houston. Hes finished second and third in Cy Young voting the past two seasons (2019 came with the Dodgers in the NL), so this shouldnt be far from his reach if hes healthy and making at least 30 starts. The fact that he's doing this as the heart and soul of the team with the best record in baseball is like throwing gas on the comeback fire. Posey opted out of the 2020 season after he and his wife adopted twin baby girls who were born prematurely in July, leaving the Giants with a significant void behind the plate. That is despite cooling off considerably over the past month-plus. American League Manager was the only one without a clear consensus, so let's start there. The Orioles look for him to serve as the anchor in a young lineup in 2022. More importantly, it denied Burnes an opportunity to pitch Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Series against the Dodgers, and sent him into the offseason with a bitter taste in his mouth. Heading into spring training, the fifth starting job appeared to be a toss up between Rodon, Reynaldo Lopez and highly touted prospects Michael Kopech and Garrett Crochet. The 22-year old shortstop has had an impressive season so far. So where does the slugging left-hander go from here? For more VegasInsider resources, check out our NFL Odds and NFL Futures Odds pages!. The No. As good as everyone already knows that Betts is, hes even better than that because of the subtleties that dont show up on a stat sheet. Justin Verlander and Albert Pujols are two of the most decorated superstars in baseball history -- and each added one more honor to his name on Tuesday night. The defense is still there, but the Twins would love 2019 Urshela at the plate. In a normal year, Yordan Alvarez would be a solid candidate for AL Comeback POY. Hell be a Gold Glove Award candidate at the hot corner, and the surprising power he displayed at the plate during his debut makes him a much more interesting all-around player to watch. November 19th, 2021 Anthony Castrovince @ castrovince You probably would have been dismissed as delirious had you predicted, one year ago, that the Angels' Shohei Ohtani would be the 2021 American League Most Valuable Player. And here are the top five betting favorites for MVP and Cy Young in both leagues entering the season (odds via Caesars Sportsbook): AL MVP Shohei Ohtani, +325 Mike Trout, +450 Vladimir Guerrero,.