Six Braves, full team up for Silver Slugger Award
The Silver Slugger Award is presented each year to the best offensive player in each league at each position on the diamond. Beginning in 2022, the honor has also been bestowed upon the most prolific hitter in each league among utility players.
• All-time Silver Slugger Award winners
From established stars with several Silver Slugger trophies on their shelves to rising rookies who are seeking their first, here’s a look at the finalists for the award at each position in 2023. Winners will be announced on MLB Network at 6 p.m. ET on Thursday, Nov. 9.
• Get MLB Network
AMERICAN LEAGUE
FIRST BASE
Triston Casas, Red Sox
Yandy Díaz, Rays
Nathaniel Lowe, Rangers
Spencer Torkelson, Tigers
Lowe is the reigning Silver Slugger at first base in the AL, and he put together another strong season, with 17 home runs and 82 RBIs for the AL pennant winners. The other three would all be first-time winners. Díaz won the AL batting title by hitting .330 this season, and also posted a .932 OPS. Torkelson led AL first basemen with 31 home runs. And the breakout rookie Casas had 24 homers and an .857 OPS.
SECOND BASE
Brandon Drury, LAA
Marcus Semien, TEX
Gleyber Torres, NYY
Semien looks like the favorite to win his second career Silver Slugger Award (he won in 2021 with the Blue Jays) after leading the AL with 185 hits and 122 runs scored in 2023, to go along with his 29 home runs, 14 steals and 100 RBIs. Drury, who won a Silver Slugger in the NL last year as a utility player, had 26 home runs and 83 RBIs in his first season with the Angels. Torres batted .273 with 25 home runs, 13 stolen bases and 68 RBIs
THIRD BASE
Alex Bregman, HOU
Rafael Devers, BOS
Isaac Paredes, TB
José Ramírez, CLE
Bregman, Devers and Ramírez have combined to win the last six AL Silver Slugger Awards at third base — Ramírez won in 2017, ’18, ’20 and ’22; Bregman won in 2019; and Devers won in 2021. Paredes is the only new name among the finalists after his breakout 31-homer, 98-RBI season for the Rays.
SHORSTOP
J.P. Crawford, SEA
Corey Seager, TEX
Bobby Witt Jr., KC
Seager hasn’t won a Silver Slugger since his back-to-back awards with the Dodgers in 2016 and ’17, but he just had the best season of his career, batting .327 with 33 home runs, 96 RBIs and a 1.013 OPS before helping the Rangers win their first World Series championship. The 23-year-old Witt had a big breakout in his sophomore season in Kansas City, finishing with 30 homers, 49 stolen bases, 96 RBIs and an MLB-leading 11 triples. Crawford had his best season yet for the Mariners, with a career-high 19 home runs and an AL-leading 94 walks.
OUTFIELD
Randy Arozarena, TB
Adolis García, TEX
Aaron Judge, NYY
Luis Robert Jr., CWS
Julio Rodríguez, SEA
Anthony Santander, BAL
Kyle Tucker, HOU
Two of the three reigning Silver Sluggers in the AL outfield are finalists again in Judge and Rodríguez — Judge followed up his historic 62-homer campaign in 2022 with 37 more in 2023 (in just 106 games), and J-Rod was just as electric as he was as a rookie, putting together his first 30-30 season in Seattle. But they have a lot of worthy challengers. García and Robert led AL outfielders with 39 and 38 home runs, respectively. Tucker, meanwhile, led the league with 112 RBIs. Arozarena had 23 homers and 22 steals for the Rays, and Santander had 28 homers and 95 RBIs for the 101-win Orioles.
Drury is a Silver Slugger finalist at two positions, here and second base, and this is the one he won in 2022 in the NL — the first year the utility position got a Silver Slugger Award. Paredes is also a multi-position finalist, also nominated at third base. The veteran Merrifield is one of the game’s most established utility players, yet is still looking for his first career Silver Slugger. But can any of those three beat out the AL Rookie of the Year Award favorite Henderson, who finished with 28 home runs, 10 stolen bases and 82 RBIs for Baltimore?
