Dodgers clean up with three individual Silver Sluggers and team award
11/12/2024 06:57 PM
The Dodgers’ championship season is filling a lot of shelves with fresh hardware.
The Dodgers were recognized as the top offensive team in baseball, winning the Silver Slugger team award on Tuesday. Three individuals — Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Mookie Betts — also won Silver Slugger awards as the top hitter in the National League at their position.
Already a finalist for the National League Most Valuable Player award, Ohtani was named the Silver Slugger Award winner as the top DH in the National League. Hernandez joined him as one of three outfielders named Silver Slugger winners. Betts was recognized in the utility category.
Silver Slugger winners are determined by a vote of the managers in each league plus three coaches from each team.
The Silver Slugger Awards are the third each for both Ohtani and Hernandez. Ohtani was also voted the American League's top DH in 2021 and 2023. Hernandez was voted one of the three Silver Slugger outfielders in the American League in 2020 and 2021.
Ohtani became the first player in baseball history to top 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in the same season. Along with the historic 50/50, he led the NL in home runs (54), RBIs (130), runs scored (134), on-base percentage (.390), slugging percentage (.646) and OPS (1.036) while finishing second in batting average (.310) and stolen bases (59).
Signed to a one-year contract with the Dodgers after he found the free-agent market disappointing, Hernandez came through with a career-high 33 home runs to go with his All-Star Home Run Derby win. He hit .272 with an .840 OPS and drove in 99 runs.
Hernandez is currently a free agent.
Betts is a seven-time Silver Slugger winner. The first six came in the outfield. He is one of only 16 players in baseball history to win as many as seven Silver Slugger awards. Four of those have come with the Dodgers. Only one player in Dodgers history has won more (Mike Piazza, five).
First baseman Freddie Freeman and catcher Will Smith were finalists at their positions.
