Mitch Moreland, who continues to capably fill Prince Fielder's shoes at first base for the American League West-leading Rangers, was named the AL Player of the Week on Monday.
Moreland hit .455 for the week with a 1.136 slugging percentage, clubbing five home runs and driving in nine runs. The 30-year-old led the Major Leagues in homers and slugging, tied for the lead in RBIs, and he was second in batting average in the AL.
Four of Moreland's home runs came in the Rangers' four-game sweep of the defending World Series champion Royals, the biggest one being a walk-off homer into the upper deck at Globe Life Park on Saturday.
With Fielder's season over due to a herniated disk in his neck that required surgery, Moreland has stepped up. In the two weeks since it was announced that Fielder could be out for the year, Moreland has posted a .366/.422/.878 slash line with seven home runs and 12 RBIs while starting 10 of Texas' 13 games at first base.
"I haven't treated it any differently than the first day of the year," Moreland said on Saturday after his walk-off home run. "It's kind of hard to replace Prince as well -- that was definitely not the goal -- but I'm glad I'm coming around a little bit."
This is Moreland's first Player of the Week honor in his seven-year career.