Shohei Ohtani and Matt Olson reign as the sluggers of the year
I started unveiling my yearend honors last week, beginning with the Ted Williams Award for the greatest batting skill in the American and National Leagues, and then the Lou Gehrig Award for the highest scoring total in each league.
Today’s category is self-explanatory. The Babe Ruth Award, as you would expect, goes to the batters who flashed the most power in 2023.
But what should we use as a yardstick? My choice is the isolated-power average (abbreviated as ISO), which reflects a hitter’s ability to wallop not just homers, but extra-base hits of all varieties. ISO is calculated the same way as batting average, though extra bases are substituted for hits. A batter gets one extra base for each double, two for each triple, and three for each homer. Add them up, then divide by at-bats.
Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels won the American League’s Babe Ruth Award by rapping 26 doubles, eight triples, and 44 home runs over the course of the 2023 season. That brought him a total of 174 extra bases, which yielded an isolated-power average of .350 (based on Ohtani’s 497 at-bats).
The race for the AL’s Ruth Award was a lopsided affair. No qualified batter in the American League other than Ohtani — that is, no other batter who made at least 502 plate appearances — posted an ISO higher than .296.
The National League’s Babe Ruth Award went to Matt Olson of the Atlanta Braves, whose isolated power worked out to a .321 rate. He finished with 27 doubles, three triples, and 54 home runs in 608 at-bats.
The top 15 sluggers in each league’s 2023 power parade are shown below.
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American League ISO leaders
1. Shohei Ohtani, Angels, .350
2. Corey Seager, Rangers, .296
3. Luis Robert Jr., White Sox, .278
4. Adolis Garcia, Rangers, .263
5. Brent Rooker, Athletics, .242
6. Isaac Paredes, Rays, .238
7. Brandon Drury, Angels, .235
8. Gunnar Henderson, Orioles, .234
9. Kyle Tucker, Astros, .233
10. Rafael Devers, Red Sox, .229
11. Triston Casas, Red Sox, .226
12. Cal Raleigh, Mariners, .224
13. Bobby Witt, Royals, .218
14. Anthony Santander, Orioles, .215
15. Spencer Torkelson, Tigers, .213
National League ISO leaders
1. Matt Olson, Braves, .321
2. Pete Alonso, Mets, .287
3. Marcell Ozuna, Braves, .285
4. Kyle Schwarber, Phillies, .277
5. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, .272
6. Max Muncy, Dodgers, .263
7. Jorge Soler, Marlins, .262
8. Ronald Acuna Jr., Braves, .258
9. Juan Soto, Padres, .245
10. Christian Walker, Diamondbacks, .239
11. Freddie Freeman, Dodgers, .235
12. Austin Riley, Braves, .234
13. Ozzie Albies, Braves, .233
14. Jack Suwinski, Pirates, .230
15. Corbin Carroll, Diamondbacks, .221
