A lot has been made of Bryce Harper‘s rookie campaign, and rightfully so. Harper’s impressed players, managers and fans with his hustle and on-field attitude and he’s played impressively considering he’s just 19 years old.
Harper may seem to be a slam dunk for the 2012 National League Rookie of the Year Award; however, the Cincinnati Reds have their own young player who’s beginning to make waves in the majors.
Todd Frazier is outperforming the vast majority of NL rookies in 2012.
In 70 games played, Frazier is slashing .285/.347/.542 with 10 HR, 33 RBI, 27 runs and 15 doubles.
Harper, in 75 games, is slashing .272/.343/.449 with nine HR, 29 RBI, 50 runs 15 doubles and 13 steals.
Among NL rookies, Frazier is first in SLG (.542), OPS (.890) and triples (five), second in RBI (33) and HR (10), third in AVG (.285) and OBP (.347), fifth in doubles (15) and sixth in walks (20) and runs (27).
The key to Todd Frazier being NL Rookie of the Year is how he performs while Joey Votto is on the DL.
In the eight games since Votto left the lineup on July 16, Frazier is slashing .323/.344/.580 with two doubles, three RBI and three runs scored.
Frazier has forced his way into the Cincinnati Reds everyday lineup and continues to take advantage of it.
In the month of July, Frazier is slashing 350/.400/.583 with three HR, 11 RBI, 12 runs, three doubles and a triple.
If Todd Frazier can continue at his current rate of production, his only true competition in the NL Rookie of the Year race will be Arizona Diamondbacks starter Wade Miley.
Miley currently sits at 11-5 with a 3.02 ERA and 85 strikeouts in 113.1 innings pitched.
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