Miller garners ROY consideration, finishes third
Cardinals right-hander gets one second-place vote, nine third-place votes
ST. LOUIS -- In a year when the Cardinals relied heavily on contributions from rookies, Shelby Miller separated himself with season-long success in the team's rotation. It earned him a third-place finish in the National League Rookie of the Year voting as well.
On Monday, the Baseball Writers' Association of America announced Miami's Jose Fernandez as the NL's 2013 Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year award winner. Fernandez earned 26 of the available 30 first-place votes. The other four went to second-place finisher, Yasiel Puig of the Dodgers.
With one second-place vote and nine third-place votes, Miller finished with 12 points, just ahead of Dodgers starter Hyun-Jin Ryu (10 third-place votes). None of the other Cardinals rookies received any votes.
After making a late-season cameo in St. Louis in 2012, Miller cracked the Cardinals' starting rotation after a drawn-out Spring Training competition in 2013. He parlayed that opportunity into a standout season in which he led all Major League rookies with 15 wins.
Miller's 3.06 ERA was 10th best in the NL and fourth among Major League rookies. He held opponents to a .234 batting average, the 13th lowest such mark among all NL starters regardless of service time.
Among Major League rookies, Miller ranked third in strikeouts (169) and fourth in innings pitched (169). Only two rookies in Cardinals history had more strikeouts in a season than Miller.
Though Miller hardly contributed in the postseason, the Cardinals watched him emerge as a cornerstone piece of the rotation during the season. If healthy, he'll be in position to approach the 200-innings mark next season at the age of 23.
The Cardinals placed finalists for another pair of awards to be given later this week. Adam Wainwright was announced as one of three finalists for the NL Cy Young Award, which will be handed out on Wednesday. Yadier Molina is seeking his first MVP Award and will find out his finish on Thursday. Each announcement will be made at 5 p.m. CT on MLB Network.