Kerry Wood lived up to all the hype.
Drafted fourth overall by the Chicago Cubs in the 1995 MLB Amateur Draft, he rocketed through the minor leagues as his pedigree rose with him.
By his MLB debut in 1998, he was the no. 4 ranked Major League prospect according to Baseball America. But by the end of the season, he was the top rookie in the National League.
Wood fired out of the starting gate like a bullet from a gun. In only his fifth Major League game he tied Roger Clemens' Major League record for most strikeouts in a single game, 20. That day Wood pitched 9.0 innings of one-hit ball, surrendering only two baserunners.
That month he had two other games of 13 strikeouts and ended the season with five games in he struck out 13 batters or more.
Wood lost September to elbow sore, a sign of things to come, but his got a postseason start against the Atlanta Braves and pitched 5.0 innings of one-run ball, though he still shouldered the loss.
Wood barely edged out Todd Helton for the NL's top rookie, receiving 128 voting points to Helton's 119.
Wood become the fourth Cub to win Rookie of the Year honors and the first since Jerome Walton in 1989. Since then Geovany Soto and Kris Bryant have both taken home honors in 2008 and 2015 respectively.
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