Young excellence thrives in every pro sports league across the globe and we tend to reward those special youths who place themselves above the rest with extraordinary performances. The Rookie of the Year award, in MLB or in any sport, highlights the accomplishments of one particular first-year player who had an outstanding debut season and showed the potential to be a future star.  

Cincinnati Reds rookie Jonathan India played in 150 games in 2021 and finished with a slash line of .269/.376/.459. He also added 21 home runs, 12 stolen bases and a league-leading 23 HBPs to win the NL Rookie of the Year award.

Handicapping any Rookie of the Year award is a difficult task as rookies, by definition, don't have an extensive track record of competing at the highest level. This year's National League field was a bit different as Seiya Suzuki, 27, came over from Japan, where he had played professionally and even won an MVP award. Playing in Japan is obviously different than playing in MLB, but that experience gave Suzuki a leg up and he was priced accordingly prior to the season. While Suzuki has remained near the top of the board, he is no longer the favorite.

MacKenzie Gore, who has long been one of the best and more intriguing prospects in baseball, has been dominant for the Padres and finds himself as the betting favorite. Gore is among several players on this list -- such as Juan Yepez, Alek Thomas and Nolan Gorman -- who weren't even on Opening Day rosters. The lengthy baseball season has numerous ebbs and flows throughout, which means there are, and will continue to be, plenty of opportunities to seek value on this board.

Here's a look at some notable names atop the odds:

• MacKenzie Gore (+150)
• Nolan Gorman (+250)
• Seiya Suzuki (+600)
• Alek Thomas (+1400)
• Juan Yepez (+1800)