The National League Rookie of the Year race came down to exactly who everyone expected.
The finalists for the NL award were Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes, Milwaukee Brewers standout Jackson Chourio and San Diego Padres start Jackson Merrill. Skenes and Merrill were considered the front-runners, and that ended up being the case.
Skenes would win the award by receiving 136 points to Merrill’s 104 points. Skenes received 23 of the 30 first place votes while Merrill received the other seven first place votes.
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But Skenes stole the show with his reaction to winning the award over anything else. Most people would be over the moon about being selected as a finalist for an award like this, but for Skenes, greatness is expected. When he was crowned the NL Rookie of the Year, his face said exactly that.
Take a look:
Rather than jumping up with joy and shouting in excitement like Skenes’ girlfriend, Livvy Dunne, did, Skenes simply cracked a small smile.
Some people have shared their distaste to Skenes’ reaction to the award as well as every other accomplishment thus far in his career. Skenes is always very emotionless in situations like this.
But I see it a different way. I see it as Skenes accomplishing something that he expects to accomplish. That’s the kind of mindset that was carried by the late, great NBA star Kobe Bryant. If Skenes’ mindset is anywhere close to that of the Black Mamba’s, the league is in trouble because he’s just getting started.
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