South Gwinnett News

Atlanta Braves veteran first baseman Freddie Freeman has been tabbed a finalist for the Hank Aaron Award, an honor that salutes the most outstanding offensive player in the regular season from both the American and National Leagues.

Freeman, who hit .300 with 31 homers and 83 RBI in leading the Braves to the National League Championship Series against the Dodgers, is among the 14 players still being considered for the award from both leagues.  

Candidates for the award are nominated by their team and a panel of MLB.com writers determined the seven finalists for each league. In addition to a fan vote, a special panel of Hall of Fame players that includes Johnny Bench, Craig Biggio, Ken Griffey Jr., Chipper Jones, Pedro Martinez, Eddie Murray, John Smoltz and Robin Yount will vote on the winners of the award, according to MLB.com.

In addition to Freeman, National League finalists include Nick Castellanos (Cincinnati Reds), Bryce Harper (Philadelphia Phillies), Fernando Tatis Jr. (San Diego Padres), Brandon Crawford (San Francisco Giants), Paul Goldschmidt (St. Louis Cardinals) and Juan Soto (Washington Nationals), MLB.com reported.

In the American League, Cedric Mullins (Baltimore Orioles), José Ramírez (Cleveland Indians), Salvador Perez (Kansas City Royals), Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles Angels), Aaron Judge (New York Yankees), Matt Olson (Oakland Athletics) and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Toronto Blue Jays) are still in the running, MLB.com said.

The 2021 Hank Aaron Award marks the first since the Jan. 22 passing of Henry “Hank” Aaron. MLB’s all-time home run leader played for both the Braves and Milwaukee Brewers, who met in the NLDS earlier this month in a four-game series won by the Braves 3-1, MLB.com reported.

The award was introduced in 1999 as a tribute to the 25th anniversary of Aaron shattering Babe Ruth’s all-time home run record of 714.