Kevin McGonigle’s quiet slump could threaten Tigers’ RoY chances as Guardians rookie excels

While it has seemed like an inevitability that Detroit Tigers rookie Kevin McGonigle will win the American League Rookie of the Year award, his recent struggles have made that a little less of a certainty. To make matters worse, Cleveland Guardians rookie Parker Messick is heating up right as McGonigle has cooled down.

Over his last 15 games (entering Friday's game), McGonigle has hit .197/.254/.344. He has just three hits in his last 28 at-bats. Now, his overall numbers on the year are .271/.372/.410 with 14 home runs and 58 runs batted in. Those are solid overall numbers, but Messick is charging.

The 25-year-old left-hander has a 2.46 ERA in 27 starts and 161 innings pitched. His ERA over his last seven starts has been 1.87, so he is thriving right at the perfect time.

McGonigle is still the favorite, but if he continues on a downward trajectory and Messick continues to surge, then the race could tighten in a way that would be very uncomfortable for Tigers fans.

Kevin McGonigle and Parker Messick should square off this weekend

This weekend could be a big determinant in who has the momentum for the rest of the year. The Tigers will face Messick and the Guardians on Saturday, and it would certainly help McGonigle’s chances if he could get a couple of knocks off Messick.

So far this season, Messick has dominated McGonigle. The lefty has faced the 22-year-old six times and he has gotten him out every single time, striking him out three times.

AL Rookie of the Year voters will obviously be looking at more than head-to-head matchups, but if it comes down to the wire and it’s basically a coin flip, those head-to-head numbers could end up mattering quite a bit.

For Tigers fans, McGonigle winning Rookie of the Year is really the only thing to look forward to the rest of the season. The team is slipping further and further out of playoff contention, so the emergence of McGonigle has been one of the few positive developments for a team that had very real playoff aspirations to begin the year.

It would be a bitter disappointment if he fades away and has it stolen from him by a player on a division rival, so if he can get back on track and maybe even get a home run — just do something — against Messick, that should get him back into overwhelming favorite status.

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