NEW YORK -- Two heavy favorites to take home significant postseason hardware, Pete Alonso and Jacob deGrom took necessary steps in that direction on Monday when the Baseball Writers’ Association of America named them finalists for the National League Rookie of the Year and Cy Young awards, respectively.

Alonso, an overwhelming favorite to be named NL Rookie of the Year after hitting a Major League rookie-record 53 home runs in his first season, joined Atlanta’s Mike Soroka and San Diego’s Fernando Tatis Jr. as finalists. The BBWAA will reveal the winner on Nov. 11, during a 6 p.m. ET show on MLB Network.

deGrom, who won the NL Cy Young Award last year, took a step closer to repeating when he joined a group of finalists that also includes Washington’s Max Scherzer and Los Angeles’ Hyun-Jin Ryu. Although deGrom didn’t quite match his 2018 Cy Young numbers, he finished 11-8 with a 2.43 ERA and a league-high 255 strikeouts in 204 innings. The winner will be announced on Nov. 13, also at 6 p.m. ET on MLB Network.

• All-time National League Rookie of the Year Award winners

For Alonso, the question is less about whether he will win and more about whether he will win unanimously. Around midsummer, he appeared locked in a tight race with Tatis Jr., but the latter’s season-ending injury gave Alonso a heavy advantage. He did nothing to jeopardize that position, hitting .260 with a .941 OPS and 120 RBIs.

“I think this is the most fun I’ve ever had playing baseball,” Alonso said in September. “It’s been extremely special. I will remember this season for the rest of my life. I mean, making the team out of camp and being able to be extremely successful, it’s been miraculous.”

deGrom’s status was not quite as certain entering September, but -- as in 2018 -- he appeared to sew up the award with a brilliant final month, going 4-0 with a 0.32 ERA over his final four starts. Another Cy would make him the 11th pitcher to win the award in consecutive years.

• All-time National League Cy Young Award winners

“You look at the names that are mentioned in winning back-to-back Cy Youngs, I would have never thought that my name would ever been mentioned in that,” deGrom said. “I’ve said before, it was a goal to win one, but to think about winning two is honestly kind of crazy to me. It would be an honor.”