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Blue Jays rookie Kazuma Okamoto’s first career Grand Slam initiates true AL ROY race
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- Blue Jays rookie Kazuma Okamoto’s first career Grand Slam initiates true AL ROY race
Blue Jays rookie Kazuma Okamoto's first career Grand Slam initiates true AL ROY race appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Toronto Blue Jays have a true rising star on their roster. Japan native Kazuma Okamoto is making a name for himself quickly in this league. The right-handed slugger has hit the 21st home run of his rookie season, and his RBI count has reached 59 after a grand slam against Logan Webb , the ace of the San Francisco Giants .
Okamoto is lighting up ballparks every series. This brings up the question: Can Okamoto make the AL Rookie of the Year race legit? Detroit Tigers ' Kevin McGonigle and Chicago White Sox 's Munetaka Murakami have been the big favorites until this point. Okamoto now has over twice as many home runs and RBIs as McGonigle has, and even though Murakami is injured, Okamoto now has 18 more RBIs, and this contest against SF is not over yet.
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All three of these players have a legit reason to win the AL ROY in 2026. Murakami has an OPS of .938, which is unreal for a rookie, and McGonigle is hitting .287 with an .821 OPS and 4.9 WAR (second highest in MLB). Okamoto's WAR is only at 1.9, but his production on the field can't be ignored right now. He still has over two months to add to his already impressive numbers. Okamoto's batting average and OPS are hurting him at the moment, but a short hot streak could see those numbers increase quickly. The right-hander does have experience at 30 years of age.
The rest of 2026 is going to be a lot of fun to watch. We will see if the Blue Jays can turn things around and get back to the postseason .
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