Relief Pitcher of the Year: Seung-hwan Oh
Seung-hwan Oh, or “The Final Boss” as he was called in South Korea, has surprised many and been a shutdown reliever for the Cardinals so far this season. Oh, 33-years-old, was signed to only a one-year contract with the Cardinals, but the former Korean and Japanese League closer has been nothing but dominant since he joined the ball club.
Oh has been one of the biggest surprises for Cardinals’ fans this season. The right-handed reliever has allowed only three earned runs in his 20.2 innings of work so far in 2016.
One of the most intriguing statistics about Seung-hwan is the amount of strikeouts he has notched in his brief MLB career. Through only 19 appearances, he has struck out 27 batters and has carried a still dropping ERA of 1.31.
Major League batters are still struggling to figure out the rookie reliever and it seems that he is only getting better. In his last three appearances, Oh has tallied seven strikeouts, only one walk and only one hit in 4.1 innings of work.
Like Molina, if Seung-hwan Oh keeps up the torrent pace that he is currently maintaining, then he may be in the running for the MLB’s Relief Pitcher of the Year award.
Next: Rookie of the Year