Francisco Lindor Named the American League Rookie of the month for September
Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor has been named American League Rookie of the Month for September.
Lindor batted .362 (38-for-105) with 17 runs scored, eight doubles, four triples, five home runs, 20 RBI and five stolen bases over 27 games to claim his first AL monthly award. He is the first Indians player to win AL Rookie of the Month honors since starting pitcher Scott Lewis in September 2008. Among qualified AL rookies, Francisco finished first in hits, doubles and stolen bases, second in runs scored and triples, third in batting average and slugging percentage (.657), tied for third in home runs and sixth in on-base percentage (.395).
On September 16th against the Kansas City Royals at Progressive Field, Lindor went 3-for-4 with one run scored, a home run and four RBI. The Caguas, Puerto Rico native collected his 100th hit in that game, his 82nd career game, to become the sixth-fastest of any player in Cleveland history dating back to at least 1914. However, the switch-hitting shortstop joined Roy Weatherly as the only Indians players to accomplish the feat in one season. Moreover, Cleveland's first round pick (8th overall) in the 2011 MLB Draft hit .313 (122-for-390) on the season, the highest single-season mark by an Indians rookie with at least 300 plate appearances since 1938 when Jeff Heath batted .343 (172-for-502). His 38 extra-base hits are most by any Indians rookie since Luis Valbuena tallied 38 during the 2009 season, while his 122 base hits are most by a Tribe rookie since Jody Gerut collected 134 hits in 2003. Particularly hot since the All-Star break, Lindor amassed 99 hits in 73 games, good for third-most among AL batters (Houston's Jose Altuve, 102 & Boston's Xander Bogaerts, 100). According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it is also the most second-half hits of any Indians rookie since 1947 when Dale Mitchell logged 129 base hits. Additionally, Lindor is just the fifth first-year AL rookie under the age of 22 over the past 33 MLB seasons (1983-2015) to collect over 100 hits and more than 10 home runs in a single season, joining Ruben Sierra (1986), Ken Griffey, Jr. (1989), Rocco Baldelli (2003) and Eric Hosmer (2011). Among his AL rookie peers, Lindor, who was promoted from Columbus (AAA) on June 14th, finished the season first in batting average, tied for first in doubles (22), second in hits (122) and third in on-base percentage.
Others receiving votes for AL Rookie of the Month included Lindor's teammate Cody Anderson (5-0, 1.38 ERA, 39.0 IP, 20 SO); Greg Bird (.347 OBP, 14 R, 8 HR, 19 RBI) of the New York Yankees; Mikie Mahtook (.356, 13 R, 4 2B, 4 HR) of the Tampa Bay Rays; and Tyler Duffey (3-0, 2.35 ERA, 30.2 IP, 27 SO) of the Minnesota Twins.
In recognition of his American League Rookie of the Month Award, Francisco Lindor will receive a specially designed trophy, suitably engraved, for his accomplishment.