Giants third baseman Matt Duffy finished second to unanimous winner Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs in National League Rookie of the Year voting announced Monday by the Baseball Writers” Association of America.
Bryant finished first on all 30 ballots submitted by the Baseball Writers — two from each N.L. city. Duffy was second on 22 of the 30 ballots and third on four more.
All three top vote-getters on the N.L. ballot played third base, with Bryant and Duffy followed by the Pittsburgh Pirates” Jung Ho Kang, who is listed as an infielder because he also played quite a bit at shortstop. Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard was fourth. Dodgers center fielder Joc Pederson (Palo Alto High) and Cardinals outfielder Stephen Piscotty (Amador Valley High, Stanford) each got one third-place vote.
The American League rookie award also was announced, with Houston Astros shortstop Carlos Correa winning over Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor and Minnesota Twins infielder Miguel Sano.
A”s outfielder Billy Burns got one second-place vote and three thirds.
Duffy, 24, might have been the biggest surprise among the Rookie of the Year finalists from either league. He made the Giants” opening day roster as a utility player but eventually forced his way into the lineup with his hot hitting and solid defense at third, eventually displacing Casey McGehee, who struggled at the plate and was released in July.
After posting a .239 batting average in April, Duffy hit over .300 until falling off to .289 in September and October. For the season, he wound up hitting .295 with 12 homers and 77 RBIs. He also was 12 for 12 in stolen bases and played solid defense, making 12 errors in 134 games at third.
Duffy had little chance to beat out Bryant, a phenom in spring training who spent less than two weeks at Triple-A before he was called up to Chicago and became an N.L. All-Star. Bryant hit .275 with 26 homers and 99 RBIs as Chicago returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2008.
Mays to be honored: Giants legend Willie Mays is among 17 people who will be honored by President Barack Obama with the nation”s highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
The late Yogi Berra is the only other sports figure who will be recognized at a Nov. 24 ceremony.
Former Giants scout dies: George Genovese, a minor league shortstop and manager who became a scout for the Giants and signed such future standouts as Bobby Bonds, George Foster and Gary Matthews, has died. He was 93.
Genovese spent 30 years with the team, signing some 40 players who made the major leagues, including Jack Clark, Chili Davis, Dave Kingman, Matt Williams, Royce Clayton and Randy Moffitt.
Giants prospect suspended: Shortstop Travious Relaford has been suspended for the first 50 games of next season after a second positive test for a drug of abuse under baseball”s minor league drug program. Relaford, 23, hit .237 for Class A Augusta.
Mariners-Rangers trade: Seattle acquired center fielder acquired Leonys Martin from Texas as part of a four-player trade that sent right-handed reliever Tom Wilhelmsen to the Rangers.