Heyward, Strasburg in middle of intriguing rookie of year race

By Carroll Rogers

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

WASHINGTON -- Two months ago, it was hard to imagine Jason Heyward having much competition for the National League rookie of the year award.

Off to a torrid start, with ESPN shadowing his every move and fans poised to make him the youngest All-Star starter since Ken Griffey Jr., Heyward was living the part.

However, an injury to Heyward’s thumb has thickened the plot. And while he has given ground, several other candidates are picking up. Right now, he’s surrounded by players making their own case for NL rookie of the year.

The Nationals’ Stephen Strasburg, who pitches Tuesday night against the Braves, is a rare match for Heyward in hype. And his star might be fresher, given his 14-strikeout, Major League debut in early June.

With his 100 mph fastball, nasty curve and 90-plus mph changeup, Strasburg is second among National League rookies in ERA (2.32), seventh in wins (five) and sixth in strikeouts (75). That’s with 10 fewer starts than another emerging NL rookie of the year candidate, Jaime Garcia, who leads NL rookies in ERA (2.21) and wins (nine) for the playoff-contending Cardinals.

Making noise out west is Georgia native Buster Posey, who had an 18-game hitting streak for the Giants through Sunday and is leading all NL rookies in batting average (.353), one-base percentage (.386) and slugging (.559).

Then there is Gaby Sanchez, who went 5-for-15 with a homer and two RBIs to help the Marlins take two of three from the Braves. Sanchez is quietly making his own case to top both Heyward and Strasburg.

Sanchez is neck and neck with Heyward in all the major offensive categories among NL rookies. He’s leading Heyward in batting average by 28 points (.304), tied in home runs (11), behind by three in RBIs (45) and leads in multi-hit games (31), hits (107) and total bases (168).

It has not gone unnoticed to Chipper Jones, a runner-up for the NL rookie of the year award to Hideo Nomo in 1995.

“Gaby is really swinging it well,” Jones said. “He’s riding some serious confidence. He’s in a good spot."

The Marlins have had three of the past seven NL rookies of the year, including Chris Coghlan a year ago. Wes Helms, the Marlins’ veteran bench player and a former Brave, thinks Sanchez has a good shot at being the next one.

“He’s been our most consistent hitter all year over Hanley, (Jorge) Cantu, (Dan) Uggla, all the guys,” Helms said. “For me, as a rookie that’s pretty special what he’s done so far.”

Heyward, meanwhile, can’t be overlooked. He’s played in the national spotlight since spring training, this after being named Baseball America’s 2009 minor league player of the year. This award seemed his to lose until Strasburg broke in for the Nationals.

Next came Heyward's jammed left thumb, which hindered him for six weeks and eventually led him to the disabled list and a seat on the bench during the All-Star game.

“The injury Jason had certainly took a lot of steam out of him,” Jones said. “There’s no doubt that it affected him because you can tell by the way the ball comes off the bat for the last month or two. It’s just not coming off the bat the same way it was in spring training, and there’s a reason for that.”

Heyward acknowledges his thumb probably won’t be right until the offseason. But he’s shown over the past 10 days that he can adapt. He enters the Nationals’ series on a nine-game hitting streak and has hit .436 (17-for-39) with 10 runs in 10 games since his return from the disabled list on July 15.

Jones pointed out that Heyward can help his own case on Tuesday night when he faces Strasburg. Heyward was on the disabled list when the Braves played against the pitcher for the first time in Atlanta on June 28 and beat him.

Heyward relishes the Strasburg opportunity, but not for any stakes in the rookie of the year race.

“I’m looking forward to a chance to play in more games the second half,” Heyward said. “I missed that series and the Marlins series at home. It’s always great to face good pitchers; it’s always great to face the best. That’s what the major leagues are about.”

At age 20, Heyward is the youngest of the bunch. Strasburg is 22. Sanchez 26. Garcia is 24. Posey is 23. Heyward, however, might give them all a run in maturity.

“For me (rookie of the year) was never the goal,” Heyward said. “For me, honestly, making the playoffs was a goal; winning the World Series was a goal.”