The National League rookie class was stacked this year, and it would have been easy to find enough names to put on a ballot with 10 slots -- although ranking the players after the first three would have been difficult. The actual NL Rookie of the Year ballot includes only those three slots, however, so it was more painful to omit rookies who had great seasons such as Shelby Miller or Gerrit Cole than it was to decide how to rank the players who did make the cut.

As I did last year, I filled out my NL Rookie of the Year ballot by first considering each player's performance during this season, and then giving secondary consideration to factors such as the player's age and future projection. I wouldn't consider any of these variables when voting on the MVP or Cy Young Awards, where the purpose of each award is very clear. I believe the Rookie of the Year award intends to highlight an emerging star, not merely the rookie with the best stats, and I vote in that vein.

I think most fans and voters agree that this race came down to two players, Marlins right-hander Jose Fernandez and Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig, both of whom were born in Cuba and both of whom played like superstars at different points during the 2013 season.