Delco's McGonigle wins AL Rookie of the Year

Raise up your Swiss Farms half-gallon iced teas and toast with a Wawa chicken tender hoagie, as MLB announced late Monday that Detroit Tigers infielder Kevin McGonigle was voted the top rookie in the American League.

McGonigle, 22, a native of Aldan, Delaware County and graduate of Bonner-Prendie High School, finished his first full professional campaign by producing a .278/.376/.430 slash line alongside an .806 OPS over 156 games for the Motown club. 

He added 18 home runs, 28 doubles, 72 RBI with 172 hits across a league-high 707 plate appearances, while also leading the Tigers in hits (168) and walks (95).

A first-round pick in the 2023 draft, McGonigle had originally committed to attending Auburn University but instead went the pro route with the Tigers organization. 

McGonigle was named to the AL All-Star squad as a reserve on July 4, just over a week before the Midsummer Classic was played in Philadelphia. The selection made him the 3rd player in team history to gain an All Star nod before the age of 21, after Al Kaline (1955) and Mark Fidrych (1976)

He joins Harvey Kuenn (1953), Fidrych (1976), Lou Whitaker (1978), Justin Verlander (2006) and Michael Fulmer (2016) as Tigers youngsters to be named the best rookie in the junior circuit. 

A Kev above the rest 👏 Kevin McGonigle is your 2026 AL Rookie of the Year! https://t.co/Oar01KDzcU

— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) November 10, 2026