Sal Stewart, the Cincinnati Reds’ first baseman, played all 162 games and drove in 112 runs, posting a 2.0 WAR. Though he surpassed Carson Benge (65 RBIs) in runs scored, the New York Mets outfielder posted more than double Stewart’s WAR (4.3 WAR) and still finished second. In that context, many fans doubt the National League Rookie of the Year award win, but Stewart has heard the critics for a long time.

In an MLB Network interview after winning the National League Rookie of the Year award, Stewart said, “I’m a kid from Miami. I worked hard for this moment. A lot of people doubted me.”

Voters, however, did not doubt him much. Stewart earned 20 of 30 first-place votes and 170 points. He was the only player listed on every ballot, and fourth-place finisher Nolan McLean was on 29 of them. Even the voters who did not rank him first still counted him among the NL’s best rookies. He became the first Reds rookie with 30 homers and 100 RBIs in a single season to achieve the feat. 

Stewart opened with 7 homers and 26 RBIs in April, winning his first Rookie of the Month award. However, his average slipped below.250 in May and June. He recovered in July, earning his first All-Star selection, and followed it with a second Rookie of the Month award in August.

While Stewart’s performance at the plate made a strong case for the award, Benge also made his appeal before the voting.

In an interview with The New York Post in late September, Benge said, “I think I deserve it. I think I showed in the whole season, doing all facets of the game, that I did a pretty good job of showcasing my talent.”

Those claims have numbers behind them.

Benge hit .282/.346/.430 with 20 homers, 22 steals, and 10 outfield assists. Benge was not the only rival with a stronger case on paper.

JJ Wetherholt, the St. Louis Cardinals‘ second baseman, posted 4.5 bWAR despite a .704 OPS. Wetherholt recorded +25 outs above average, second in the majors behind Pete Crow-Armstrong (+26). Even Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Logan Henderson, a down-ballot pitcher, logged 3.3 bWAR.

This is not the first time Cincinnati has faced voting backlash, though in a different form.

In 1957, Reds fans stuffed ballot boxes and elected eight Reds position players to the NL All-Star starting lineup. Ultimately, Commissioner Ford Frick intervened and replaced Reds outfielders Gus Bell and Wally Post and first baseman George Crowe with superstars Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, and Stan Musial. However, five Reds players, including Ed Bailey, Johnny Temple, Roy McMillan, Don Hoak, and Frank Robinson, still remained in the starting lineup.

The intervention angered the Reds fans, and as the American League won that game 6-5 on July 9, 1957, at Busch Stadium, many fans dragged an effigy of the Commissioner through the streets. Following the incident, Frick stripped fans of All-Star voting in February 1958 and handed selection to players, coaches, and managers. Fan voting did not resume until 1970.

Coming back to this year’s NL Rookie of the Year voting, the members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, not fans, filled out 30 ballots, and Stewart appeared on each one of them. The debate now is about how voters weighed WAR against power, and not about the ballots themselves.

Many fans sided with Benge and Wetherholt, pointing to WAR, defense, and a rookie eligibility rule that kept Stewart’s 18-game 2025 debut from costing him the selection. 

Fans react to Sal Stewart’s Rookie of the Year win over Carson Benge and JJ Wetherholt

“Ridiculous,” wrote a fan.

Stewart’s 2.0 bWAR was the lowest of the three finalists, while Benge and Wetherholt each rated more than double.

“Benge robbed LMFAO. Jokes, man,” read another reaction on X.

Benge finished second with 107 points and seven first-place votes. He led the NL right fielders with 10 assists, posted a 118 OPS+, and became a 20-20 player, showcasing a more complete season.

One commented, “Great season, but the voters got it wrong.”

Stewart’s 32 homers and 112 RBIs were real, but he hit .247 over his final 24 games with only one extra-base hit. The disagreement is about value because Wetherholt’s elite defense and Benge’s all-around play produced far better WAR.

Another user remarked, “The anti-Mets bias is disgusting.”

Mets rookies took two of the top four spots, with Benge at second and Nolan McLean ranking fourth with 70 points. Despite two Mets players making it into the top five this year, New York has not had a winner since first baseman Pete Alonso in 2019.

“Sorry, but this rule needs to be changed. He played 18 games last year. He’s not a rookie,” noted one fan.

MLB rules let a hitter keep rookie status with fewer than 130 at-bats or 45 days on the active roster before September 1. Stewart debuted on Sept. 1, 2025, and logged only 55 at-bats across 18 games, so he entered 2026 fully eligible as a rookie, despite what some fans exclaimed.

Voters chose Stewart’s power and durability, and the Reds gained an extra pick in the 2027 draft because MLB’s Prospect Promotion Incentive rewards a team that gives a top prospect a full rookie season, with the NL winner earning that pick.