New York – Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki’s impressive start to his rookie MLB season on Monday earned him a National League Player of the Week award.
The 27-year-old hit .412 last week on seven hits in 17 at bats with three homers, five RBIs and five walks in six games. He is the first player from Japan since the Los Angeles Angels’ Shohei Ohtani in 2018 to win the weekly honor within the first month of his rookie season.
Suzuki signed a five-year, $85 million contract with the Cubs after playing nine seasons for the Hiroshima Carp in Nippon Professional Baseball. The Cubs also paid an additional $14.625 million posting fee to his former team.
Ohtani was the last Japanese major leaguer to be named Player of the Week, a Major League Baseball award given throughout the regular season to the player from each league deemed to have had the most impressive week of play. Ohtani won his fourth Player of the Week Award in July 2021.
Jose Ramirez of the Cleveland Guardians was the recipient of the American League Player of the Week Award for April 11-17. He hit .478 with two homers and 11 RBIs.
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Source : Baseball – The Japan Times