The first 2.5 months of the 2023 MLB season has been full of surprises, and the Arizona Diamondbacks are one of them. Their expectations weren’t high, but they’ve exceeded them all, and it is thanks in large part to rookie outfielder Corbin Carroll.
Carroll was selected by the Diamondbacks in the first round of the 2019 MLB Draft. He spent just a couple of seasons working his way up through the minor leagues, and made his major league debut as an August call-up last season. He had an average impact in 115 plate appearances in 2022, hitting .260 with 4 home runs and 14 RBI.
Corbin Carroll Could Win MVP and ROY
His name is Corbin Carroll
(via @Dbacks)
pic.twitter.com/HbqcX58xcY
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) June 20, 2023
But fresh off of his first full off-season as a major-leaguer, Corbin Carroll has not only been one of the best rookies, he’s been one of the best players period. His batting average currently sits at .304 and his on-base percentage is at .384. He is the National League leader in slugging percentage and OPS, and has hit 16 home runs and driven in 39. He has been caught stealing just twice, the least of any player with 19+ steals.
The sportsbooks have taken notice. Carroll is currently the heavy favorite to win National League Rookie of the Year, as it seems that only a monumental collapse or unfortunate injury will keep him from the award. He is currently listed at -500, with Reds’ newcomer Elly De La Cruz at a distant +700. It looks to be a two-man race at this point (if that), as the next player listed is all the way down at +3500.
Bet on Corbin Carroll For ROY (-500) at BetOnline
That isn’t the only award that Carroll is threatening to win. Ronald Acuña Jr. entered the season as the favorite to be named the NL’s Most Valuable Player, and he still has that designation at -140. But the next guy on the list is Carroll, who sits at +650.
Carroll And Diamondbacks Are Surging
At the moment, there aren’t a lot of players challenging for the MVP award. Freddy Freeman comes in behind Carroll at +700, but Mookie Betts’ 4th place designation sits at +2000.
Bet on Carroll For NL MVP (+650) at BetOnline
The Diamondbacks themselves are surging as Corbin Carroll does. They began the season with some of the longest odds of any team to win the World Series, and they find themselves alone atop the National League West, ahead of the San Francisco Giants by 3.5 games entering Tuesday’s action.