There’s a new Rookie of the Year favorite in the National League.

Thanks to a red-hot stretch since the All-Star Break, Jackson Merrill is now the odds-on favorite to win the award, stealing the top spot from Paul Skenes, who was a near shoo-in less than a month ago. 

As recently as early August, Skenes was as high as -5000 and off the board completely at some sportsbooks, according to Ben Fawkes on X. 

A week ago, the Pirates flamethrower was still in near-lock territory, with BetMGM pegging him at -1400 to be the senior circuit’s Rookie of the Year. 

But it’s now Merrill’s award to lose. 

He’s sitting at -175 odds compared to Skenes at +135 at FanDuel heading into Thursday’s baseball slate. 

With a little more than a month to go, it appears it will be one of the two’s award when all is said and done – no other NL rookie has odds better than 47/1.

The Padres outfielder has been on a tear of late, helping fuel San Diego’s run to the top of the National League Wild Card race. 

Merrill has put up a 1.023 OPS since the All-Star break while coming up with clutch hit after clutch hit for the Padres, who are tied for MLB’s best record over that stretch. 

Overall, Merrill is hitting .291/.322/.491 with 18 home runs, excellent baserunning and strong defense in center field. 

Skenes, on the other hand, still has a sparkling 2.30 ERA in 16 starts this season, but he’s taken a slight step back of late, posting a 4.50 ERA over his last two outings heading into Thursday’s start against the Reds. 

There has also been some speculation that the Pirates could shut down or cut back on Skenes’ workload if they fade out of the playoff race in an attempt to keep the pitching phenom healthy for the long run, helping boost Merrill’s award odds.