Athletics Name 2015 Award Winners

Post date: Sep 21, 2015 4:20:30 PM

Bryce Harper, Kenley Jansen, and Rafael Devers honored with 2015 A's organizational awards

The Philadelphia Athletics organization have announced the winners of the three major organizational awards. Right fielder Bryce Harper takes the Jimmy Foxx Award as the team's Offensive Player of the Year, closer Kenley Jansen takes the Lefty Grove Award as Pitcher of the Year, and highly-touted prospect Rafael Devers wins the Crash Davis Award as the club's Minor League Prospect of the Year.

For Harper, his organizational honors follow on the heels of being named the WFBL Mike Schmidt Award honoree as the league's Offensive Player of the Year. Harper hit .339 with a .470 on-base percentage, crushed 34 homers, drove in 83 runs, and scored 101 runs during the 2015 regular season. The honor ends a 3-year streak of winning the Foxx Award by his friend and teammate, Mike Trout. Both players were called up together on the same day in 2012, and have been pivotal in the team's rebounding to contenders.

Jansen became just the 4th reliever to win the Grove Award in the 18 years that it has been given out. After starting the year on the Disabled List for the season's first 5 weeks, Jansen came back and stabilized what had been a struggling bullpen. He recorded 28 Saves despite the lost time, with a 2.27 ERA and a magnificent 0.73 WHIP. Jansen struck out 62 batters in his 39.2 innings over which he allowed just 24 hits.

Devers becomes just the second 3rd baseman to win the Davis Award. At just age 18, he ties Harper as the youngest players to ever win the honor. Devers hit .288 with 11 homers, 70 RBI, and 71 runs scored during a full season in the A-level South Atlantic League, where he was an average of 3.5 years younger than the competition. His long term position is yet to be determined. He could stay at the hot corner, or may move across the diamond to 1st base eventually. But wherever his glove takes him, his bat should be in the A's lineup before the end of the decade.

Previous winners of each of these honors can be found at the "Awards" link from the tool bar at the right here at the official Athletics site.