2013 AZ SnakePit Awards: Rookie of the Year

We start by announcing the winner of last week's category, the single-game Performance of the Year. We have out first majority winner, Paul Goldschmidt's uber-clutch performance on August 13, homering to tie the game in the ninth, then again to walk off in extras, receiving 51% of the votes. It's the first 'Pittie award for Goldschmidt. Something tells me, it's probably not going to be the last...

Moving on to the Rookie of the Year category. Here are the stats for all qualifying players who appeared for the Diamondbacks this season.

Hitters

Pitchers

Adam Eaton

Eaton's season was much-anticipated, described in March by Sports Illustrated as, "the trendy pick to win this year's National League Rookie of the Year." Fate, however, had other plans. However, the curse of SI bit hard, as barely a week later, Adam was sidelined by a sprained left elbow. The team hoped for a return in early May, but his recovery hit a setback and he more or less had to start again. It wasn't until July 9 that he made his season debut for Arizona, and he was still rusty, hitting .216 with a .591 OPS over his first 27 games. But Eaton then hit his stride, batting .272 the rest of the way. 2014 will see him as a White Sox, but many fans will still be following Spanky there.

Didi Gregorius

If injury closed Eaton's door, it also opened one for Gregorius. He didn't make the Opening Day roster, but when Aaron Hill broke his hand in mid-April, Didi got the call. He wasted no time, homering on the very first pitch he saw as a Diamondback - in Yankee Stadium no less - and in his opening dozen games for Arizona, hit .422 with a 1.203 OPS. Of course, that couldn't last, but Gregorius still ended the season with an OPS over .700, almost exactly matching his minor-league number. Watching his cannon of an arm was also a great pleasure, and he made several stops which were considered Play of the Year nominees.

Will Harris

Harris wasn't even a Dback at the start of 2013. But in three days, he went from Colorado to Oakland and then on to Arizona, where he entered the back of the 'pen in May after J.J. Putz went on the DL. But Harris's performance was anything but "back of the bus". He put up a zero in 49 of 61 appearances, and his ERA+ of 132 was ninth among rookie relievers in the majors (min 50 IP). He'd likely have been higher, but for one day where he allowed four earned runs while retiring a single batter. Outside that, his ERA the rest of the season was a sparkling 2.24. As is, he became our first rookie reliever with a sub-three ERA and 50 IP since 2003 (Jose Valverde and Oscar Villarreal).

A.J. Pollock

Another one not expected to make the roster, but when first Cody Ross, and then Jason Kubel, hit the disabled list, Pollock got his chance, and seized it with both hands. As the team's everyday center fielder, he was a pivotal factor in why our outfield defense was the best in the National League. His offense was more than acceptable, starting with A.J.'s three hits against the Cardinals on Opening Day, and he posted an OPS better than than the NL average at center, and the overall result was 3.5 bWAR for Pollock, ranking him fourth in the majors among all rookie position players this season.