Angels' Shohei Ohtani and Braves Ronald Acuna Jr. named top rookies

Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani was voted American League Rookie of the Year after becoming the first player since Babe Ruth with 10 homers and four pitching wins in the same season.

Ohtani, a 24-year-old righthander who joined the Angels last winter after five seasons with Japan's Nippon Ham Fighters, received 25 first-place votes and four seconds for 137 points from the Baseball Writers' Association of America in balloting announced Monday.

A pair of Yankees infielders followed. Miguel Andujar was second with five firsts and 89 points, and Gleyber Torres was next with 25 points.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. was an overwhelming pick for National League Rookie of the Year, easily beating Washington outfielder Juan Soto.

The 20-year-old Acuna received 27 first-place votes and three seconds for 144 points. Soto got two firsts and 89 points, and Dodgers pitcher Walker Buehler was next with one firsts and 28 points.

... Dodgers pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu was the only player to accept among the seven given $17.9 million qualifying offers by their former teams on Nov. 2. A 31-year-old lefthander, Ryu was 7-3 with a 1.97 ERA in 15 starts.

Wimbledon and U.S. Open champion Novak Djokovic made an impressive start to his campaign for a sixth title at the ATP Finals by dismissing John Isner 6-4, 6-3 in London.

Former New York Giants running back Ron Johnson, who was the first black player to be a captain of the Michigan football team, has died. He was 71. Johnson had died after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease.

Johnson was an All-American for the Wolverines in 1968 when he ran for 1,391 yards that season and scored a school-record 19 touchdowns.

Johnson became the first New York Giant to run for 1,000 yards in a season in 1970 and accomplished the feat against in 1972.

Wisconsin reserve forward Alex Illikainen is leaving the team. The Badgers say that the former Grand Rapids High standout will remain enrolled at the university. The little-used senior averaged 1.5 points and 1.3 rebounds in 85 games.

... Duke jumped from fourth to first in the first Associated Press regular-season poll, leapfrogging Kansas at the top after a blowout win against then-No. 2 Kentucky last week. That allowed Duke to set a record with its 135th week at No. 1, breaking a tie with UCLA for the most top rankings. Kansas, Gonzaga and Virginia are Nos. 2-3-4.

David Pearson, the second-winningest NASCAR Cup Series driver in history, died at the age of 83. Pearson amassed an incredible 105 victories in NASCAR's top division. That mark stands as the second most of any driver in history, behind only Richard Petty's 200 career Cup wins. Pearson won championships in 1966, 1968, and 1969.