Clemens (2B), Twins (Offensive Team of the Year) nominated for Silver Slugger Award

The Silver Slugger Award is presented to the best hitter at each position in each league annually, and it is voted on by MLB managers and coaches (who are not allowed to vote for players on their own teams). The coveted honor was established in 1980, with new categories for best-hitting utility player (2022) and best offensive team (2023) added in recent years. All-time Silver Slugger Award winners This year’s Silver Slugger finalists were announced by Louisville Slugger on Thursday, and the winners will be announced on Nov. 17 . There is a great mix of established household names and rising young stars among the 2026 finalists. AMERICAN LEAGUE Catcher Dillon Dingler , Tigers Carter Jensen , Royals Dingler was putting together a huge season for the Tigers through early August. Over his first 106 games, he owned an .877 OPS with 26 home runs. But from there, his bat cooled off considerably -- he produced a .149/.195/.203 slash line with one homer the rest of the way. Still, his season at the plate was impressive overall -- his 27 homers were tied with his Silver Slugger co-finalist for most among AL backstops. Jensen finished his first full Major League season with a .790 OPS and 27 homers of his own. His 12.7% barrel rate placed him in the 85th percentile among qualified batters last season, according to Statcast. First base Pete Alonso , Orioles Willson Contreras , Red Sox Alonso’s first season in an Orioles uniform couldn’t have gone much better. The hulking slugger led the AL with 43 home runs and 113 RBIs, and his 149 OPS+ was a career best. His .402 expected weighted on-base average was second in the AL only to MVP favorite Yordan Alvarez’s .442. Contreras, who began his big league career behind the plate, was moved to first base full-time by the Cardinals in 2025, before he was dealt to Boston prior to last season. He put together a career year in his first season with the Red Sox, finishing with a .901 OPS and 27 home runs. With ferocious bat speed (an average of 77 mph, 96th percentile among qualified batters), he finished second in the league to Alvarez with a Statcast batting run value of +41. Second base Kody Clemens , Twins Chase Meidroth , White Sox Clemens also turned in a career year for the Twins, leading all AL second basemen with 27 homers and an AL-high seven triples to go along with a .758 OPS. He had several big hits for Minnesota in 2026, highlighted by an ultimate grand slam to walk off the Royals on July 30. The White Sox were the biggest surprise team in baseball this past season, and Meidroth contributed in big ways to get the South Siders to the playoffs just two years after they lost an MLB-record 121 games. In his second big league season, Meidroth delivered a .765 OPS with 16 home runs. Shortstop Kevin McGonigle , Tigers Bobby Witt Jr. , Royals Zach Neto , Angels McGonigle had a stellar rookie campaign for Detroit, making him a leading AL Rookie of the Year candidate . He produced a .278/.376/.430 slash line with 18 homers in an AL-high 707 plate appearances. His 19.6% chase rate ranked in the 98th percentile among qualified batters, and his 13.4% walk rate ranked in the 94th percentile. Witt, an AL MVP finalist for the second time in three years, had another tremendous offensive campaign, one in which he posted an .800 OPS with 18 homers and 45 steals. His .302 expected batting average was second only to Alvarez (.318), and the 63-point difference between his xSLG (.504) and his actual SLG (.441) was tied for third-highest among all qualified batters in 2026. He’s seeking his third consecutive Silver Slugger Award. Neto connected for more than 20 homers for the third straight season, belting 27 this year to go along with a .766 OPS. His home run total was second among AL shortstops only to Colson Montgomery’s 31. Get the latest from the Twins Have the latest news, ticket information, and more from the Twins and MLB delivered right to your inbox. Sign up Third base Junior Caminero , Rays Miguel Vargas , White Sox For the second time in as many seasons, Caminero smashed more than 40 homers (42) and drove in more than 100 runs (101) for Tampa Bay, enough to secure a spot as an AL MVP finalist . His MLB-best 79.4 mph average bat speed is his calling card, and it resulted in a sensational age-22 campaign for the rising superstar. Vargas enjoyed a breakout season for the upstart White Sox, belting 33 home runs with an .837 OPS for the South Siders, earning his first career All-Star selection. Outfield Wilyer Abreu , Red Sox Randy Arozarena , Mariners Cody Bellinger , Yankees Jac Caglianone , Royals Chase DeLauter , Guardians Riley Greene , Tigers Tristan Peters , White Sox Chandler Simpson , Rays Mike Trout , Angels The AL outfield finalists for the Silver Slugger Award mirror the rest of the league’s finalists in the sense that a majority of them are seeking to win their first career Silver Slugger honor: Abreu, Arozarena, Caglianone, DeLauter, Peters and Simpson would all be first-time winners. Known primarily for his sterling defense in right field -- he’s won the last three Gold Glove Awards at the position in the AL -- Abreu had a career year at the plate in 2026, leading the league with 38 doubles to go along with 24 homers for Boston. Arozarena earned his third All-Star nod in his age-31 campaign, pacing the junior circuit with 113 runs scored and posting an .865 OPS. DeLauter (.820 OPS) and Peters (.774 OPS) are each looking to capture a Silver Slugger honor as a rookie, whil Caglianone hit 23 homers and slugged .494 in his sophomore year. Trout is looking to become just the third player to earn 10 Silver Slugger wins (Mike Piazza, 10; Barry Bonds, 12) after posting an .803 OPS in 142 games, his most in 10 years. Bellinger, a two-time winner, was an All-Star after belting 17 homers with a .768 OPS. Simpson would be an unorthodox winner -- the speedster hit .306 and led the AL with 46 steals but hit zero home runs. Only two non-pitchers have taken home a Silver Slugger Award after finishing the season in the no homers club -- Ozzie Smith (1987, NL SS) and Pete Rose (1981, NL 1B). Designated hitter Yordan Alvarez , Astros Ben Rice , Yankees Alvarez, the favorite to win the AL MVP Award , played in 150 or more games in a season for the first time, and showed just how good he can be when healthy. He hit a career-high 42 homers and led the Majors in batting average (.316), on-base percentage (.432), slugging (.601) and walks (109). Rice, meanwhile, followed up a strong 2025 campaign with a huge ’26, connecting for 41 homers while producing an .897 OPS for the Bronx Bombers, earning his first All-Star selection. Utility Sam Antonacci , White Sox Ezequiel Duran , Rangers Kevin McGonigle , Tigers Antonacci delivered a strong rookie showing for the White Sox, hitting .277 with a .370 on-base percentage, thanks in part to a league-high 29 times being hit by a pitch, while playing left field (121 games) and second base (32). Duran hit a career-best 17 home runs while appearing at every position on the diamond except pitcher and catcher in 2026. And McGonigle wasn’t merely a shortstop -- the AL Rookie of the Year candidate also played third base in 94 games for Detroit. Offensive Team of the Year Astros Rays Twins White Sox Led by Alvarez, the Astros hit more homers (226) than any team in MLB last season. The Rays, meanwhile, owned the AL’s best team batting average, at .258. Runs scored are the name of the game, and the White Sox led the league in that category, with 776. Right behind them? The Twins, with 739 (tied with the Yankees). NATIONAL LEAGUE Catcher Hunter Goodman , Rockies Gabriel Moreno , D-backs Only two players in the NL hit more homers than Goodman’s 41 -- the Cubs’ Pete Crow-Armstrong and the Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber (45 each). And, remarkably, the Rockies’ backstop belted more home r