Even though the Athletics played the 2025 season in relative obscurity in a minor-league ballpark in Sacramento, there was no denying the impact that first baseman Nick Kurtz had on the game this year.
The 22-year-old Lancaster, Pa. native who was the fourth overall pick of the A's in the 2024 MLB Draft had a dominating year, hitting 36 home runs and driving in 86 runs. For his efforts, he was named the American League Rookie of the Year on Monday, claiming all 30 first place votes. He played his college ball at Wake Forest.
His 1.002 OPS ranked third in baseball behind only New York's Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers, both of whom are MVP candidates. Kurtz played in 117 games and hit .290.
Kurtz was called up in late April and made an immediate impact on the A's, who finished the season with a 76-86 record. The A's played their home games in Sacramento, Calif., this season after moving from Oakland. They are building a new stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., and will be playing there in 2028.
Here are all of the American League Rookies of the Year since 2000.
AL Rookies of the Year (2000-25)
2000 — Kazuhiro Sasaki, pitcher, Seattle Mariners
2001 — Ichiro Suzuki, outfielder, Seattle Mariners
2002 — Eric Hinske, third base, Toronto Blue Jays
2003 — Angel Berroa, shortstop, Kansas City Royals
2004 — Bobby Crosby, shortstop, Oakland Athletics
2005 — Huston Street, pitcher, Oakland Athletics
2006 — Justin Verlander, pitcher, Detroit Tigers
2007 — Dustin Pedroia, second base, Boston Red Sox
2008 — Evan Longoria, third base, Tampa Bay Rays
2009 — Andrew Bailey, pitcher, Oakland Athletics
2010 — Neftali Feliz, pitcher, Texas Rangers
2011 — Jeremy Hellickson, pitcher, Tampa Bay Rays
2012 — Mike Trout, outfielder, Los Angeles Angels
2013 — Wil Myers, outfielder, Tampa Bay Rays
2014 — Jose Abreu, first base, Chicago White Sox
2015 — Carlos Correa, shortstop, Houston Astros
2016 — Michael Fulmer, pitcher, Detroit Tigers
2017 — Aaron Judge, outfielder, New York Yankees
2018 — Shohei Ohtani, designated hitter, Los Angeles Angels
2019 — Yordan Alvarez, outfielder, Houston Astros
2020 — Kyle Lewis, outfielder, Seattle Mariners
2021 — Randy Arozarena, outfielder, Tampa Bay Rays
2022 — Julio Rodriguez, outfielder, Seattle Mariners
2023 — Gunnar Henderson, shortstop, Baltimore Orioles
2024 — Luis Gil, pitcher, New York Yankees
2025 — Nick Kurtz, first base, The Athletics
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