HOLYOKE, MA – Valley Blue Sox alum Trey Mancini of the Baltimore Orioles was named a finalist for the American League Rookie of the Year award on Tuesday night.

Mancini, an alum of the 2011 Blue Sox, had a fantastic rookie season for the Orioles in 2017, logging a .293/.338/.488 slash with 24 HR’s and 78 RBI’s in 586 PA’s. He joins New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge and Boston Red Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi as a finalist for the award.

“We’re incredibly proud of Trey and all he’s been able to accomplish,” said Blue Sox Manager Hunter Golden. “It’s a tough group to be a part of – especially when you’re looking at guys who are as good as Benintendi and Judge were this season. Mix that in with the fact that there’s only two guys in his organization who’ve done what he’s been able to do as a rookie and it makes for a pretty special honor for him.”

The 6’4, 215 lbs. infielder is no stranger to Rookie of the Year honors, having won the NECBL’s Rookie of the Year award during his time with the Blue Sox in 2011. That season he hit .296 while hitting 7 home runs and knocking in 34 RBI’s.

While Mancini was part of the Blue Sox before Golden’s tenure as General Manager began, he was quick to point to the impact that Mancini left on the organization and pointed to his presence as proof of the league’s blossoming talent pool.

“While this achievement is 100% his own doing, I do think it speaks to the talent our league as well as the talent our program has begun to produce over the last 6-7 years,” continued Golden. “Trey’s undoubtedly our most accomplished individual player to date – of course Juan Ortiz winning the World Series with the San Francisco Giants was pretty big, too; but those achievements are beginning to become more frequent and as we continue to grow as a league and a program, you’ll see this become more of the norm.”

Following his senior season at Notre Dame, Mancini was selected in the 8th round of the 2013 MLB Draft. It took only four seasons for Mancini to make his way to the big leagues and along the way was named Baltimore Orioles’ organizational player of the year in 2015.

Mancini’s 24 home runs were the third-most ever by a Baltimore Orioles rookie, placing him behind only Cal Ripken Jr. and Eddie Murray – both of whom won their respective Rookie of the Year Awards and summarily went on to have Hall of Fame careers.

“I mean when you’re talking Cal Ripken Jr and Eddie Murray – that’s pretty exclusive company,” opined Golden. “But the important thing for Trey to do is not get lost in that and keep on doing what he needs to do to get better. The easy part – breaking in – is over. Now comes the hard part of staying good, maintaining a consistent level of performance and evolving as he changes and matures as a ballplayer. We’re confident he can do that and I know I speak on behalf of everyone here when we say we’re pulling for him.”