Next up was the AL Rookie of the Year. The Toronto Blue Jays may be having a season to forget, but not rookie Eric Hinske. He takes home the hardware as the first half's Rookie of the Year.

Check out the candidates below, what we had to say about each player and the ESPN.com poll results.

ESPN.com POLL

Eric Hinske, Blue Jays

HR RBI AVG R OBP SLG 14 44 .289 48 .380 .536 Giving the Jays more than they expected at the hot corner but defense is still suspect.

Jorge Julio, Baltimore

IP H SVS ER W/L ERA 37.1 33 16 15 4-4 2.65 Asked to close for a struggling team but has managed to get the job done when asked.

Nick Johnson, Yankees

HR RBI AVG R OBP SLG 11 40 .235 32 .318 .416 Johnson has played nicely at first allowing Giambi to DH. .

Rodrigo Lopez, O's

IP H R ER W/L ERA 92.2 78 34 32 6-3 3.11 Moved into the starting rotation from the bullpen and is third on the team in innings pitched.