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Orioles third baseman Manny Machado on Monday was named the American League Player of the Month for April, an honor that shows the best start of his career getting noticed around the league.
Machado, who had his breakout season last year and finished fourth in the MVP voting, hit .344/.394/.667 in April and is tied for the team lead with seven home runs. His 10 doubles were second-most in the majors, and he played his typical Gold Glove defense at third base.
Teammate Mark Trumbo (.337/.385/.573 with six home runs) was another candidate for the montly award.
Machado has twice been named the American League Player of the Week, most recently in June 2015, but this is his first Player of the Month honor.
The only comparable month of his career was last June, when Machado hit .365 with a 1.046 OPS, eight home runs and seven doubles. His 17 extra-base hits this month is the second-most in a single month in his entire career.
He started off May just as well, adding a pair of hits in Sunday's loss to the Chicago White Sox. Machado entered the Orioles' off-day Monday batting .350/.404/.660 on the season.