How Parker Messick won a crucial edge for the Guardians despite Rookie of the Year loss

Last night Guardians starter Parker Messick came up just short in his quest to win American League Rookie of the Year when he finished second to Tigers infielder Kevin McGonigle. While that “loss” doesn’t take anything away from his fantastic rookie season that helped push the Guardians toward the American League Championship Series, it opened a Pandora’s Box that could reverberate across barstools in Northeast Ohio for years to come. 

But one big positive that can be gleaned from his second place finish is the fact it officially netted the Guardians a Prospect Promotion Incentive pick in the 2027 MLB Draft. 

Parker Messick's strong season helped the Guardians earn another draft pick

Although we already knew that Messick had helped the Guardians once he was named a Cy Young finalist (any player who earns a top-three Cy Young finish in his first three years earns their team one), his runner-up finish in the Rookie of the Year race meant he got it a little earlier than expected. 

Messick ended up recording the second-place finish by a fairly large margin, as McGonigle earned 28 of the 30 first round picks, which will also grant the Tigers a PPI pick. 

The PPI program was installed in the sport’s last CBA in an attempt to combat service time manipulation and encourage teams to call prospects up earlier. The program initially gave any player who met the criteria a full year of service time (like what happened with Tanner Bibee in 2023), but now it also gives teams an extra draft pick after the first round. 

Messick also provided the Guardians with some great on-the-field production as well, as he finished the season with a 2.56 ERA and 193 strikeouts in 186 1/3 innings. He was the fourth-most valuable pitcher in the American League in fWAR (4.9) along with being the second-most valuable by bWAR (6.3). 

That wasn’t enough to unseat McGonigle, who finished the year with a .278/.376/.430 slashline with elite walk and strikeout numbers. 

Fellow Guardian Chase DeLauter came in sixth in the race while earning a single second-place vote. Although DeLauter ended up having a couple injury scares, he still made it into 133 games while tallying a .820 OPS with 67 RBI. Second baseman Travis Bazzana also made his way onto the final standings with one fourth place vote. 

The Guardians getting a PPI pick may not hold the same kind of national attention as the Cavs or Browns getting an extra draft pick, but it’s arguably just as important considering how much the Guardians love to build from within. 

They dealt away one of their draft picks last season as a part of the Patrick Bailey trade, but those coffers are a little more full for next spring thanks to Messick’s strong season. 

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow