Rays' Arozarena named ALCS MVP

Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Randy Arozarena was named the American League Championship Series MVP on Saturday following his team's 4-2 win in Game 7 against the Houston Astros.

The 25-year-old Cuban sensation had four home runs and six RBIs in the ALCS, including a two-run shot in the first inning of the winner-take-all contest.

Arozarena is the first rookie position player to be named MVP of a league championship series. He managed a .321 batting average and 1.152 OPS to propel the Rays to the World Series.

"I don't have any words that can describe what he's done, what he's meant to us this postseason," Rays manager Kevin Cash said, according to AJ Cassavell of MLB.com. "For him to have a bat in his hands with an opportunity for a big home run, I think it settled a lot of people in the dugout. It certainly did me."

The Rays rookie entered the ALCS on a tear, posting a 1.556 OPS with two doubles and a triple against the Toronto Blue Jays in the wild-card round, which he followed with a 1.371 OPS, eight hits, and three homers against the New York Yankees in the division series.