Fulmer, Naquin among top AL ROY Award candidates

The competition for the American League Rookie of the Year Award spoiled us last year, because it featured two highly touted June callups who quickly asserted themselves at the game’s premier defensive position and got us talking about what a great rivalry, of a sort, the Carlos Correa -Francisco Lindor dynamic would be for years to come.

This year, the discussion is not simplified to a single spot, and it’s not loaded with guys who were darlings of the prospect-ranking world, either. The AL field this year is filled with players whose ascensions were more subtle but whose presence has nonetheless been impactful.

Here’s my early AL Rookie of the Year Award ballot:

Hardware Hopefuls

• AL MVP • NL MVP

• AL Cy Young • NL Cy Young

• AL Rookie of the Year • NL Rookie of the Year

• Friday: AL Manager of the Year • Friday: NL Manager of the Year

• AL MVP • NL MVP

• AL Cy Young • NL Cy Young

• AL Rookie of the Year • NL Rookie of the Year

• Friday: AL Manager of the Year • Friday: NL Manager of the Year

1. Michael Fulmer, RHP, Tigers Fulmer wasn’t the most acclaimed of the young pitchers the Tigers received in their midseason selloff in 2015 (Daniel Norris, acquired in the David Price trade with Toronto, held that standing), but so far he’s been the best. Fulmer arrived from the Mets in the Yoenis Cespedes swap, was given a shot when Shane Greene was injured and has mastered a changeup that was only lightly used in the Minors to help stabilize the starting rotation for a contending Tigers team.

Fulmer, 23, had some hiccups his first few trips to the mound, but dating back to May 15, he’s made 15 starts and posted a 1.88 ERA with a .562 OPS against in 96 innings. His stuff isn’t flashy but his results are steady and strong. The Tigers believe they can get through the season without having to shut Fulmer down on account of innings, which means he’ll get plenty of opportunities to nail …

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