Mets' Kodai Senga runner-up in NL Rookie of the Year voting

Kodai Senga may not have been the top rookie in the National League this year, but he was the best rookie pitcher.

Senga was the runner-up in NL Rookie of the Year voting, collecting 22 of 30 second-place votes and 71 points overall, the Baseball Writers’ Association of America announced Monday night.

Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll, who became the first first-year player to hit 25 home runs and steal 50 bases, was the unanimous winner, listed first on every ballots (150 points). Outfielder James Outman of the Dodgers was third with 20 points.

Like the other major awards, such as MVP and the Cy Young Award, Rookie of the Year is determined by a vote of select BBWAA members. Ballots were cast before the start of the playoffs.

Senga, 30, was not a traditional rookie, having established himself as an elite pitcher across more than a decade of pitching professionally in Japan, but he nonetheless was a rookie by major-league standards. And the first season of his five-year, $75 million contract was a resounding success.

He finished with a 2.98 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 202 strikeouts in 166 1/3 innings. Although the Mets treated him very carefully, pitching him on regular rest on just three occasions, he still made 29 starts, just shy of the 30-32 range that is considered a full, normal season.

Most significantly to Senga, he made it through the year healthy, a point of pride he harped on throughout the year, especially at the end. His performance and availability make him the Mets’ top starting pitcher — and potential 2024 Opening Day starter — though that is subject to change with offseason additions.

In the American League, Orioles shortstop/third baseman Gunnar Henderson was the runaway Rookie of the Year, earning all 30 first-place votes for 150 points total. Then came righthander Tanner Bibee of the Guardians (67 points) and first baseman Triston Casas of the Red Sox (25).

Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe nabbed a lone third-place vote, good for eighth.

By Tim Healey

timothy.healey@newsday.com@timbhealey

Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.