Kansas City Royals All-Star Bobby Witt Jr. was named the overall winner of the 2025 Heart & Hustle Award, which is presented annually by the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association (MLBPAA) to one player on each team who "best embodies the values, spirits and traditions of baseball," along with factoring in on-field performance. Witt is just the second player to ever receive the award in back-to-back seasons, joining Craig Biggio (2006-2007).
1958 - Milwaukee Braves second baseman Red Schoendienst is diagnosed as having tuberculosis and will appear in just five games in 1959. 1997 - The Braves trade Fred McGriff to the expansion Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for a player to be named later. 2002 - The Florida Marlins send recently-acquired pitcher Mike Hampton to the Atlanta Braves for Ryan Baker and Tim Spooneybarger.
From his manerisms on the field to his bat flip in the postseason, Guerrero takes home the award after inking the largest contract in franchise history at 14 years and $500 million earlier this season. Every time he stepped on the field, he was providing energy, and the MLB commented on the award for Guerrero that he "shined both on and off the field this season".
Thursday was a busy night around the league, and Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. joined in on the fun, taking home the National League Comeback Player of the Year Award. After returning from a major ACL injury, Acuña got back in the swing of things pretty quickly. He ended 2025 with a .290 batting average, cranking 21 home runs and even stealing nine bases.
Willy Adames became the first player in a Giants uniform to slug 30 home runs since Barry Bonds, and Rafael Devers anchored the lineup with a combined 35 homers between San Francisco and Boston, but neither player was the club's lone finalist for a Silver Slugger award. The honor belonged to Matt Chapman, who was passed over when Gold Glove finalists were announced earlier this month but is being recognized for his bat.
The Toronto Blue Jays may have a few nominees this season, but they have certainly had many prolific power hitters in their history who have taken home the prestigious Silver Slugger Award in recognition of their offensive excellence. Some have been no-brainers, when you hear their name they are almost synonymous with winning a Silver Slugger award. However, there have been a surprising number of Blue Jays that managed to received the award based solely on a rare outlier season.
With the 2025 season nearing its end, the annual awards are on the horizon. This year, Louisville Slugger joins FanSided to announce the Silver Slugger Award finalists and winners. National League finalists will be revealed on October 22, with winners named on November 6. In the American League, the finalists are announced on October 23, and the winners follow on November 7. The announcements will come exclusively on the The Baseball Insiders YouTube channel.
Major League Baseball's awards season is just around the corner and FanSided (parent company of Jays Journal) has partnered with Louisville Slugger to announce the finalists and the award winners of the 2025 Silver Slugger Awards. The announcements will be done live on The Baseball Insiders podcast and YouTube show. FanSided is excited to partner with Louisville Slugger to exclusively announce the finalists and winners for the 2025 Silver Slugger Awards, live on The Baseball Insiders podcast and YouTube show. pic.twitter.com/96THE8h5jk FanSided (@FanSided) September 17, 2025
Just as baseball's postseason chase has entered the stretch run, those vying for individual honors are running out of time to make their cases. This is our fourth and final Awards Watch of the regular season, and with that in mind, we've changed up our usual format to narrow the focus of each race to the leading contenders in each category. What races are all but decided? Which ones remain very much up in the air? Let's dig in.
