The Kansas City Royals announced today that first baseman Eric Hosmer and left-handed pitcher Mike Minor have been named Royals Player and Pitcher of the Month, respectively, for the month of May. The awards are determined by a local media vote.
Hosmer hit .367 (40-for-109) in May, fourth best in the Majors. He recorded his 1,000th career hit on Wednesday vs. Detroit, his 40th hit of the month, making him the first Royal to record 40 hits in the month of May since Rey Sanchez in 2001. He also led the Royals in on-base percentage (.421) and slugging percentage (.560) during the month, reaching safely in 26 of 29 games. He tied for ninth in the American League with five go-ahead RBI in May, including three game-winning RBI. This is Hosmer’s ninth career Royals Player of the Month award, breaking a tie with Joakim Soria, Billy Butler and Zack Greinke for third most since the award was first given in 1995, trailing only Alex Gordon and Mike Sweeney (13 each).
Minor led the Royals with 16.0 innings in relief during the month, including a 14.1 scoreless-innings streak over 10 outings from May 4-26, in which he held opponents to a .109 average (5-for-46) with 19 strikeouts (11.93 SO/9). The Royals were 8-4 in the 12 games he pitched in May, including his first two wins since 2014, on May 21 at Minnesota (1.1 IP) and May 26 at Cleveland (2.0 IP). This is Minor’s first Royals Pitcher of the Month award, becoming the first left-handed reliever to earn the monthly honor since Ron Mahay in July of 2008.