Major League Baseball announced the finalists for the 2018 Hank Aaron Award, and representing the Los Angeles Dodgers is first baseman Max Muncy.
Each team gets one nomiee for the award that recognizes offensive excellence. Fans can vote on the ultimate winner from each league at MLB.com until Monday, Oct. 8.
A special panel of Hall-of-Fame players, led by Aaron, will also vote on the winners of the award. The panel includes Roberto Alomar, Johnny Bench, Craig Biggio, Ken Griffey Jr., Eddie Murray and Robin Yount. Winners will be announced during this year’s World Series.
No one could have predicted that Muncy would be among the representatives for the Hank Aaron Award, as he began the season with Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Muncy went on to lead the Dodgers with 35 home runs, batting .263/.391/.582 with 79 RBI and 75 runs scored. Muncy did not quite have enough plate appearances to qualify, but among Among National League players with at least 300 plate appearances, he ranked second in slugging percentage and on-base plus slugging percentage.
Muncy came up with many key hits throughout the course of the 2018 season, but perhaps none bigger than on Monday afternoon against the Colorado Rockies in Game 163 to decide the National League West division. He hit a two-run home run off German Marquez to help seal the victory.
The Hank Aaron Award has been around since 1999, and the only Dodgers player to win it was Matt Kemp in 2011. Cody Bellinger was the franchise’s representative for the award last season.
