At the end of the regular season, Jonathan India had family members and friends texting him daily about his chances of winning National League Rookie of the Year.
They all had the same message: "You're going to win! You're going to win!" India is the odds-on favorite to win the award, which will be announced on Nov. 8. Finalists for the award, voted upon by the Baseball Writers Association of America, will be named on Nov. 1.
The Cincinnati Reds haven't had a Rookie of the Year since Scott Williamson in 1999 and no Reds position player has won the award since Chris Sabo in 1988.
"Listen, it'll be an honor to win," India said. "It'll be a dream come true. But at the end of the day, it's out of my hands. I played well enough, of course, but it's not up to me. I hope I do win it."
The accolades have already begun for India. He was named one of the three Oustanding Rookie Award finalists for the MLB Player Association's Player Choice Awards on Thursday, joining Dylan Carlson (St. Louis Cardinals) and Patrick Wisdom (Chicago Cubs). The winner will be announced next Thursday on ESPN.
India was selected as Baseball America's Rookie of the Year on Friday, which isn't separated by league. The last five winners were Tony Gonsolin (2020), Pete Alonso (2019), Shohei Ohtani (2018), Aaron Judge (2017) and Corey Seager (2016).
"Definitely there's a lot more in me, I know that," India said. "I have a lot more to show. I'm not completely satisfied with the year I've had, but I'm very happy with what I did."
India finished the season with a .269 batting average, .376 on-base percentage, 34 doubles, 21 homers, 69 RBI, 98 runs and 12 stolen bases. He became the first player in MLB history with at least 20 homers, 20 hit by pitches and 10 stolen bases.
VOTTO FINALIST: Joey Votto was named one of the three finalists for the NL Comeback Player Award in the Players Choice Awards.
The other finalists are San Francisco Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford and Giants catcher Buster Posey.
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