RJ Abarrientos of Barangay Ginebra and Justin Baltazar of Converge are in a two-way fight for the PBA Rookie of the Year title. However, as of right now, Abarrientos might have the advantage because Baltazar’s offer depends on whether he has met a prerequisite to be eligible for the prize.

According to PBA regulations, a player must have participated in at least 70% of their team’s games during the season in order to be eligible for the ROY award and, by extension, all other year-end league awards.

The season began without Baltazar, this year’s first overall pick, playing right away. His MPBL team, Pampanga, who was then vying for the title, did not release him until after the regional meet’s competition, delaying his PBA debut.

He only made his Converge debut in the fourth game of the midseason Commissioner’s Cup, and he missed every game the team played in the PBA Governor’s Cup.

According to reports, the PBA is attempting to ascertain whether there is a gap that would enable Baltazar to be eligible for the prize.

In all of the conferences where Baltazar competed, Converge advanced to the playoffs, including the current Philippine Cup, where Abarrientos’ Barangay Ginebra eliminated the FiberXers in the quarterfinals.

The two-time MPBL MVP, who is tied with teammate Justin Arana for seventh place in the Best Player of the Conference standings, has been a force in the Converge campaign.

With 13.5 points, 12.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.3 blocks per game, Baltazar has 34.6 statistical points.

He placed in the Top 20 rookies in the BPC race, together with Abarrientos, Kai Balunggay (Phoenix), and Caelan Tiongson (Rain or Shine).

Although Ginebra advanced to the semifinals and will face top seed San Miguel for a spot in the playoffs, Abarrientos played in the finals back-to-back this season, and his team is in the running for a potential championship.

During the eliminations, the Kings’ No. 3 overall pick had 14.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 4.1 assists.

The competition for the ROY award did not go well for the other rookies in this year’s class. Balunggay, Tiongson, Felix Pangilinan-Lemetti, Jonel Policarpio, Jerom Lastimosa, Mark Nonoy, CJ Cansino, Evan Nelle, Xyrus Torres, Brandon Ramirez, Peter Alfaro, and No. 2 choice Sedric Barefield (Blackwater) are among them.