By MATT PIKE
Louisville Slugger has announced the finalists for the American League and National League Silver Slugger awards over the last two days, with four Kansas City Royals featured among the American League side and two St. Louis Cardinals going head to head at the utility position.
Position finalists and winners are determined by a vote of managers and coaches who cast ballots for players at each position in their league. Each team receives four votes; the manager and three coaches of the team’s choice. Votes are based on a combination of offensive statistics including OPS, OPS+, home runs, RBI, batting average, total bases and runs, as well as the managers’ and coaches’ general impressions of a player’s overall offensive value.
Vinnie Pasquantino is a finalist for the first time after enjoying his first 30 home run, 100 RBI season, making him and Salvador Perez the first Royals teammates ever to reach those marks in the same season. Pasquantino was third in the AL with 113 RBIs and was second among AL first basemen with 30 home runs.
The Royals first baseman has tough competition alongside him as Athletics rookie Nick Kurtz and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Blue Jays are the other finalists. Kurtz led AL first basemen with 36 home runs and had 86 RBIs. Guerrero Jr. was sixth among AL first basemen with 23 home runs and had 84 RBIs.
Salvador Perez won his fifth Silver Slugger Award last year, and has been a finalist in 11 of the last 12 seasons. He was third among all American League catchers with 30 home runs and second with 100 RBI. He became the second-oldest catcher ever to post a 30-homer, 100-RBI season.
Perez is a finalist along with Cal Raleigh of the Mariners and Shea Langeliers of the Athletics. Raleigh could be the clear favorite for the award after smashing a major league best 60 home runs and driving in 125 runs. Langeliers was second among American League catchers with 31 home runs and 72 RBIs.
Bobby Witt Jr. won his first Silver Slugger Award last season and is a finalist for the third consecutive season.
This year, he led the American League in hits (184) and doubles (47). He was also seventh in batting average (.295), ninth in slugging percentage (.501), eighth in OPS (.852), sixth in runs scored (99), fourth in triples (6), fourth in total bases (312), and fourth in Runs Created (114). He was third among AL shortstops in wRC+ at 130, and Anaheim’s Zach Neto was the only other AL shortstop to hit 20+ home runs and steal 20+ bases.
Witt Jr could bring home his second consecutive Silver Slugger over fellow finalists Bo Bichette of the Blue Jays and Jeremy Pena of the Astros. Bichette hit 18 home runs and drove in 94 runs. Pena was just below the Blue Jays shortstop with 17 home runs and 62 RBIs.
Maikel Garcia is a finalist for the first time at the utility position, although he played 136 of his 160 games at third base. He ranked seventh in the AL in hits (170) and singles (110), fifth in doubles (39) and triples (5), and ninth in batting average (.286).
Garcia is up against Ben Rice of the Yankees and Zack McKinstry of the Tigers. Rice split most of his time between catcher and first base for New York, batting .255 with 26 home runs and 65 RBIs. McKinstry played all around the field, 85 of his 144 games at third base, batting .259 with 12 home runs and 49 RBIs.
On the National League side, both St. Louis Cardinals face off in the utility position, with outfielder Alec Burleson and utility player Brendan Donovan earning nominations.
Burleson enjoyed a breakout season while splitting time between first base and the corner outfield spots. The 26-year-old finished with 144 hits, 18 home runs and 69 RBIs, hitting .290 to go along with career highs in OPS, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and doubles. Burleson’s 18 home runs ranked second on the team behind Willson Contreras.
Donovan, who earned his first All-Star selection earlier this year, was a consistent spark for the Cardinals when healthy. Despite missing significant time in the second half with injuries, he still played 118 games and finished with 132 hits, 10 home runs and 50 RBIs, while batting .287.
Unfortunately for St. Louis, only one of the two can take home the hardware. Donovan and Burleson will compete against Jake Cronenworth of the San Diego Padres for the Silver Slugger at utility. This would be a first for all three players, each of them having never won a Silver Slugger award. Cronenworth hit .246 on the season with 11 home runs and 59 RBIs.
Winners of the 2025 Silver Slugger Awards will be announced Nov. 6.
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