# Who won MLB Rookie of the Year?

*Kevin McGonigle took 28 of 30 first-place votes in the American League and Sal Stewart took 20 of 30 in the National League.*

- Type: Explainer
- Section: Sports
- By: Sports Desk
- Published: 2026-11-12T01:38:44-05:00
- Updated: 2026-11-12T01:38:44-05:00
- URL: https://factsdesk.com/sports/who-won-mlb-rookie-of-the-year/

## Key facts

- Kevin McGonigle of the Detroit Tigers won the 2026 American League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year award with 28 of 30 first-place votes and 204 points. Source: [Baseball Writers' Association of America](https://bbwaa.com/26-al-roy/). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:00-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/sports/who-won-mlb-rookie-of-the-year/#kevin-mcgonigle-of-the-detroit-tigers-won-the-2026-american
- Sal Stewart of the Cincinnati Reds won the 2026 National League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year award with 20 of 30 first-place votes and 170 points. Source: [Baseball Writers' Association of America](https://bbwaa.com/26-nl-roy/). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:00-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/sports/who-won-mlb-rookie-of-the-year/#sal-stewart-of-the-cincinnati-reds-won-the-2026-national
- Parker Messick of the Guardians finished second in the American League with 122 points, and Payton Tolle of the Red Sox finished third with 54. Source: [Baseball Writers' Association of America](https://bbwaa.com/26-al-roy/). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:00-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/sports/who-won-mlb-rookie-of-the-year/#parker-messick-of-the-guardians-finished-second-in-the
- Carson Benge of the Mets finished second in the National League with 107 points, and JJ Wetherholt of the Cardinals finished third with 99. Source: [Baseball Writers' Association of America](https://bbwaa.com/26-nl-roy/). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:00-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/sports/who-won-mlb-rookie-of-the-year/#carson-benge-of-the-mets-finished-second-in-the-national
- The Baseball Writers' Association of America scheduled the Rookie of the Year announcement for November 9, 2026, in a show starting at 7 p.m. Eastern time on MLB Network. Source: [Baseball Writers' Association of America](https://bbwaa.com/2026-award-winners-to-be-announced-on-mlb-network/). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:00-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/sports/who-won-mlb-rookie-of-the-year/#the-baseball-writers-association-of-america-scheduled-the

Kevin McGonigle of the Detroit Tigers won the 2026 [American League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year](https://bbwaa.com/26-al-roy/) award, and Sal Stewart of the Cincinnati Reds won the [National League award](https://bbwaa.com/26-nl-roy/). The Baseball Writers' Association of America, whose members vote on the award, published both results on November 9, 2026.

## How the 2026 vote came out

McGonigle received 28 of the 30 first-place votes in the [American League balloting](https://bbwaa.com/26-al-roy/), and Parker Messick of the Guardians received the other two. The association said McGonigle and Messick were the only players named on every American League ballot.

| American League | First-place votes | Points |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kevin McGonigle, Tigers | 28 | 204 |
| Parker Messick, Guardians | 2 | 122 |
| Payton Tolle, Red Sox | 0 | 54 |

Stewart received 20 of the 30 first-place votes in the [National League balloting](https://bbwaa.com/26-nl-roy/). Carson Benge of the Mets received seven and JJ Wetherholt of the Cardinals received three. The association said Stewart was the only player listed on every National League ballot.

| National League | First-place votes | Points |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Sal Stewart, Reds | 20 | 170 |
| Carson Benge, Mets | 7 | 107 |
| JJ Wetherholt, Cardinals | 3 | 99 |

## Who the winners are

McGonigle is an infielder who split his season between two positions. The [association's report](https://bbwaa.com/26-al-roy/) said he played 96 games at shortstop and 94 games at third base, and was a designated hitter in five games. He is the sixth Tigers player to win the award. [MLB.com reported](https://www.mlb.com/news/2026-mlb-rookie-of-the-year-award-winners) that Detroit selected him 37th overall in the 2023 Draft.

Stewart is a first baseman who hit 32 home runs and drove in 112 runs, according to the [association's report](https://bbwaa.com/26-nl-roy/). He is the ninth Reds player to win the award, and the most recent before him was Jonathan India in 2021. [MLB.com reported](https://www.mlb.com/news/2026-mlb-rookie-of-the-year-award-winners) that Stewart played in all 162 games and that the Reds selected him with the 32nd overall pick in the 2022 Draft.

## How the voting works

Each league's award is decided by 30 ballots, submitted by two writers representing each city in that league, and the [association publishes](https://bbwaa.com/26-nl-roy/) every writer's ballot with the result. Ballots were cast before postseason play. A first-place vote is worth seven points, second place four, third place three, fourth place two and fifth place one.

The association [scheduled the announcement](https://bbwaa.com/2026-award-winners-to-be-announced-on-mlb-network/) for November 9 in a show starting at 7 p.m. Eastern time on MLB Network. The same schedule lists the Most Valuable Player awards for November 12.

## Recent winners

The [association's award history](https://bbwaa.com/) lists these winners for the last three seasons.

| Season | American League | National League |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2026 | Kevin McGonigle, Tigers | Sal Stewart, Reds |
| 2025 | Nick Kurtz, Athletics | Drake Baldwin, Braves |
| 2024 | Luis Gil, Yankees | Paul Skenes, Pirates |

The award is named for Jackie Robinson, whom the [association lists](https://bbwaa.com/26-nl-roy/) as the very first winner, in 1947.

## Sources

1. [Tigers' infielder Kevin McGonigle wins AL Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year](https://bbwaa.com/26-al-roy/), Baseball Writers' Association of America, 2026-11-09 (primary source)
2. [Slugging Reds first baseman Sal Stewart takes NL Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year](https://bbwaa.com/26-nl-roy/), Baseball Writers' Association of America, 2026-11-09 (primary source)
3. [2026 award winners to be announced on MLB Network](https://bbwaa.com/2026-award-winners-to-be-announced-on-mlb-network/), Baseball Writers' Association of America, 2026-11-02 (primary source)
4. [BBWAA home page, award history by year](https://bbwaa.com/), Baseball Writers' Association of America, 2026-11-12 (primary source)
5. [Tigers' all-around star and Reds' throwback slugger named Rookies of the Year](https://www.mlb.com/news/2026-mlb-rookie-of-the-year-award-winners), MLB.com, 2026-11-09 (primary source)