5 rookies who could impact the MLB playoff race

Honorable Mentions

The five players mentioned above will be the most crucial to their team’s success, but there are a handful of other rookies worth mentioning and acknowledging.

Andrew Benintendi, Boston Red Sox — Last year’s first-round pick debuted for the Red Sox on August 2, and has not disappointed. He has played outstanding defense and has seven extra-base hits in his first 19 games. Benintendi doesn’t make the top five because Boston is not necessarily counting on him to carry the team. He could be platooned with Chris Young should the Red Sox hang on for a playoff berth.

Alex Bregman, Houston Astros — Another first-round pick from 2015 has also already made his debut and is having an impact. Bregman has now homered in three of his past five games. The Astros are not dependent on Bregman upping his .229 batting average. Their starting pitching is the bigger concern. Bregman will likely split some time with another rookie, Yulieski Gurriel, the Cuban 32-year-old, who debuted last week.

Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees — The Yankees have surprisingly gone 11-8 since their trade-deadline sell-off to creep back onto the fringes of wild-card contention. Sanchez has been a big part of that run. The catcher is batting .385 with eight home runs and a 1.259 OPS in his first 17 games in the big leagues this year. That’s a small sample size, and Sanchez is sure to cool off. The Yankees have a ton of exciting, young talent, but their time will have to wait until next year.

Kenta Maeda, Los Angeles Dodgers — Maeda will have to prove that he can stay healthy for a full season. He has won five of his last six decisions, but has logged only 40 innings with a 3.83 ERA over seven starts in that time period. It’s been a good first season in America for the 28-year-old out of Japan, but the Dodgers’ hopes hinge on whether or not Clayton Kershaw can return from his back injury and pitch like Clayton Kershaw.