Oakland Athletics’ 2015 Team Award Winners

Rookie of the Year – Mark Canha 

Sep 22, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Athletics first baseman Mark Canha (20) celebrates after hitting an RBI single against the Texas Rangers during the second inning of the game against the Texas Rangers at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

This was a tricky award because it could have gone to either Burns or Mark Canha. However, with Burns’ production slowly declining during the second half and Canha’s success increasing during that time, Canha is the one that leaves a lasting impressive in our minds. He really showed his true potential in the last couple of months of the season and proved to be a quality Rule 5 rookie for the Oakland Athletics.

Canha dealt with a respiratory illness that affected his playing ability throughout the first half of the season. However, once recovering in June, Canha made a big impression at the plate. By the end of the season, Canha had been able to collect 70 RBI, which was the third most on the team behind Josh Reddick and Stephen Vogt. He also hit 16 home runs, which is a respectable number on a team where the most homers hit by an individual player this year was 20.

Canha also proved to be somewhat of a utility player and took on first base, third base, and two outfield positions this season. In his normal position at first, he did a great job defensively and maintained a .993 fielding percentage over 75 games played. If he stays healthy, Canha is expected to be the A’s starting first baseman in 2016. Canha worked hard throughout the entire season and really found his stride in the second half of the year, so he deserves to be recognized as Oakland’s Rookie of the Year.

Next: Cy Young Award