The Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year Award is considered the most prestigious honor given to a minor league player. It began in 1981 and has been awarded annually by Baseball America. Research by Baseball Almanac.
"This (winning the 2004 Minor League Player of the Year Award) is something that I hadn't expected, but is truly an honor. At the start of the year, my main goal was to go out and give my team a chance to win every time I took the mound. I share this award with all of my teammates, coaches and managers from this season and would like to thank the entire Rockies organization for all its support." - Jeff Francis on MLB.com (John Mossman, 12/09/2004)
Minor League Player of the Year AwardIn Chronological Order / By Baseball America |
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Year | Player Name (Qty) | POS | Minor League Team (Affiliate Of) |
1981 | Mike Marshall (1) | 1B | Albuquerque (Dodgers) |
1982 | Ron Kittle (1) | OF | Edmonton (White Sox) |
1983 | Dwight Gooden (1) | RHP | Lynchburg (Mets) |
1984 | Mike Bielecki (1) | RHP | Hawaii (Pirates) |
1985 | Jose Canseco (1) | OF | Huntsville / Tacoma (Athletics) |
1986 | Gregg Jefferies (1) | SS | Columbia / Lynchburg / Jackson (Mets) |
1987 | Gregg Jefferies (2) | SS | Jackson (Mets) |
1988 | Tom Gordon (1) | RHP | Appleton / Memphis / Omaha (Royals) |
1989 | Sandy Alomar (1) | C | Las Vegas (Padres) |
1990 | Frank Thomas (1) | 1B | Birmingham (White Sox) |
1991 | Derek Bell (1) | OF | Syracuse (Blue Jays) |
1992 | Tim Salmon (1) | OF | Edmonton (Angels) |
1993 | Manny Ramirez (1) | OF | Canton-Akron / Charlotte (Indians) |
1994 | Derek Jeter (1) | SS | Tampa / Albany-Colonie / Columbus (Yankees) |
1995 | Andruw Jones (1) | OF | Macon (Braves) |
1996 | Andruw Jones (2) | OF | Durham / Greenville / Richmond (Braves) |
1997 | Paul Konerko (1) | 1B | Albuquerque (Dodgers) |
1998 | Eric Chavez (1) | 3B | Huntsville / Edmonton (Athletics) |
1999 | Rick Ankiel (1) | LHP | Arkansas / Memphis (Cardinals) |
2000 | Jon Rauch (1) | RHP | Winston-Salem / Birmingham (White Sox) |
2001 | Josh Beckett (1) | RHP | Brevard County / Portland (Marlins) |
2002 | Rocco Baldelli (1) | OF | Bakersfield /Orlando / Durham (Devil Rays) |
2003 | Joe Mauer (1) | C | Fort Myers / New Britain (Twins) |
2004 | Jeff Francis (1) | LHP | Tulsa / Colorado Springs (Rockies) |
2005 | Delmon Young (1) | OF | Montgomery / Durham (Devil Rays) |
2006 | Alex Gordon (1) | 3B | Wichita (Royals) |
2007 | Jay Bruce (1) | OF | Louisville / Chattanooga / Sarasota (Reds) |
2008 | Matt Wieters (1) | C | Bowie / Frederick (Orioles) |
2009 | Jason Heyward (1) | OF | Myrtle Beach / Mississippi / Gwinnett (Braves) |
2010 | Jeremy Hellickson (1) | RHP | Durham / Charlotte (Rays) |
2011 | Mike Trout (1) | OF | Arkansas (Angels) |
2012 | Wil Myers (1) | OF | Omaha / Northwest Arkansas (Royals) |
2013 | Byron Buxton (1) | OF | Fort Myers / Cedar Rapids (Twins) |
2014 | Kris Bryant (1) | 3B | Tennessee / Iowa (Cubs) |
2015 | Blake Snell (1) | LHP | Charlotte / Montgomery / Durham (Rays) |
2016 | Yoan Moncada (1) | 2B | Portland / Salem (Red Sox) |
2017 | Ronald Acuna Jr. (1) | OF | Gwinnett / Mississippi / Florida (Braves) |
2018 | Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (1) | 3B | New Hampshire / Buffalo / Dunedin (Blue Jays) |
2019 | Gavin Lux (1) | SS | Oklahoma City / Tulsa (Dodgers) |
2020 | No Winner Selected (x) | -- | COVID-19 Pandemic (n/a) |
2021 | Bobby Witt Jr. (1) | SS | Northwest Arkansas / Omaha (Royals) |
2022 | Gunnar Henderson (1) | SS | Bowie / Norfolk (Orioles) |
2023 | Jackson Holliday (1) | SS | Bowie / Norfolk (Orioles) |
2024 | Not Yet Awarded (x) | -- | -- |
Year | Player Name (Qty) | POS | Minor League Team (Affiliate Of) |
Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year | Baseball Awards |
In 1986, Gregg Jefferies won the Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year Award. The following year (1986) he won the award again. A unique honor not equaled until 1995 / 1996, by Andruw Jones.
A breakdown of Minor League Player of the Year winners by positions: Fifteen outfielders, seven shortstops, six right handed pitchers, four third basemen, three first basemen, three catchers, three left-handed pitchers, and one second baseman.
Do you agree with the choices? If you were a writer at Baseball America would you have chosen a different player? Share your opinions on our Baseball Almanac Facebook Group, on Baseball Almanac Twitter, via Baseball Almanac Messenger, or our baseball forum — Baseball Fever.