Steve Webb
LOS ANGELES, CA — The 2022 Hank Aaron Award finalists were announced by Major League Baseball on Monday, and as expected your Los Angeles Dodgers were well represented. Both first baseman Freddie Freeman and outfielder Mookie Betts were named as two of the eight finalists in the National League.
The award is presented to the player voted as the most outstanding regular-season offensive performer from each league, and it was established in 1999, the 25th year after Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s all-time home run record of 714.
Freeman had the most consistent performance at the plate of any of the Dodger stars this year, slumping seldom and heating up at just the right moment throughout the year. He hit .299 in April, but every month thereafter his batting average was over .300, sometimes well over that mark. Power numbers were somewhat down early in the year, but what he lacked in homers, he made up for in doubles, leading the league in that category. He finished the year with a .325 batting average, missing out on the batting title by just one hit on the last day of the season. The lefty slugger’s final slash line for the season was .325/.407/.511 (AVG/OBP/SLG) and he belted 21 home runs. His OPS of .918 was second in the NL behind the Cards’ MVP candidate Paul Goldschmidt. All in all, a spectacular season from one of baseball’s most reliable hitters.
Betts, on the other hand, was sort of feast or famine at the plate all year long. His 35 home runs was a career high, but the power came at the expense of his batting average, as his .269 mark is well below some of the other finalists for the Aaron award (only Phillies masher Kyle Schwarber has a lower average in the group). However, with his power surge, Betts was able to be a solid, if inconsistent, contributor to many Dodger victories during the season. With an OPS of .873, Betts was sixth among all hitters in the Senior Circuit. In addition, his 35 homers were good for fifth in the NL. Of course, Betts brings a whole lot more to the stadium than his bat, so he is probably more likely to finish higher in the MVP voting than he is for the Aaron award.
Each MLB team nominated one player for the honor and a panel of MLB.com writers selected 16 finalists from the 30 nominees. Beginning Monday and running through Oct. 24, fans can vote for the player from each league they think should receive the award by going to: MLB.com/aaron.
In addition to the fan vote, a panel of Hall of Fame players will also vote — the panel includes Ken Griffey Jr., Chipper Jones, Pedro Martínez, John Smoltz, Johnny Bench, Craig Biggio, Eddie Murray and Robin Yount.
Congrats to both these Dodgers. It was a great year, no matter how that final weekend in San Diego turned out.
