In one fashion, 2015 was the greatest season ever for rookies. The cumulative WAR for this class broke the previous record set in 1987 -- and broke that total in early August.

As expected, Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs and Carlos Correa of the Houston Astros won the top rookie honors. Bryant was an easy choice in the National League over Matt Duffy of the San Francisco Giants and Jung Ho Kang of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Bryant lived up to the hype as baseball's top prospect entering the season, hitting .275 with 26 home runs and 99 RBIs. His 5.9 WAR outpaced Duffy's 4.9 and ranked eighth among all NL position players, meaning he may finish in the top 10 of the MVP voting as well.

The American League vote really was a coin flip between the two dynamic young shortstops, Correa and Francisco Lindor of the Cleveland Indians. Both were called up in June, Correa getting off to a blazing start by hitting .315/.339/.593 through his first 25 games. He finished at .279/.345/.512 with 22 home runs and 68 RBIs in 99 games. Lindor, meanwhile, hit .313/.353/.482 in 99 games after a slow start that had him hitting .222 after 25 games. But he hit .370 in August and .325 in September, offensive output that bettered anything he did in the minors. His 12 home runs with the Indians were more than he'd hit in 2014 in the minors, and he hit just two in 59 games at Triple-A before his recall.

Known for his glove as he came up through the minors, Lindor will battle it out with Correa for All-Star starts in the future. Lindor actually rated higher than Correa in WAR, 4.6 to 4.1, thanks in part to excellent defensive metrics, so Indians fans who are griping about the voting results have a legitimate complaint. He was credited with 10 defensive runs saved compared to Correa's zero.

But the most intriguing aspect of this year's rookie group isn't the voting results, but rather what happens in the future. Bryant and Correa both reached the postseason -- and were hitting third for their teams, showing the confidence their managers already have in them.

Bryant is older than the two shortstops -- he was in his age-23 season, Lindor in his age-21 and Correa in his age-20 -- so he may be closer to his peak than those two. His growth depends largely on his ability to cut down on strikeouts; he led the NL with 199. That he was able to hit .275 is a testament to how hard he hits the ball when he does make contact. Of players who have struck out at least 175 times in a season, only nine hit for a higher average, and only two of those hit .300 (Ryan Howard in 2006 and Bobby Bonds in 1970). Bryant already is a star but can become an MVP candidate by cutting that strikeout rate a bit.

Correa's production was even better than expected, given that he missed much of 2014 with a broken fibula. He had played just 62 games at Class A, so the feeling was he was going to need to play most of the season in the upper minors. Instead, he needed just 29 games in Double-A and 24 in Triple-A before his recall to the Astros. And he just turned 21 in September. Given his age, power and solid defense, he has "best player in the game" potential.

Lindor isn't far behind, especially if the power he showcased in the majors is for real. If he can hit 15 to 20 home runs, bat .300 and contend for Gold Glove awards, that's an MVP-caliber player as well.

As mentioned, that's just the tip of the iceberg for the 2015 rookies. Miguel Sano of the Minnesota Twins will win home run titles. Addison Russell, part of that impressive Cubs rookie corps, is the third young stud shortstop. Michael Conforto raced through the upper minors to contribute to the New York Mets' drive to the World Series. The Los Angeles Dodgers' Joc Pederson looked like he'd be the easy rookie of the year winner through May. The Mets' Noah Syndergaard was the most impressive rookie pitcher, although Lance McCullers of the Astros wasn't far behind. Carlos Rodon of the Chicago White Sox flashed ace-like stuff (if not ace-like command just yet).

And who knows which rookies will come out of nowhere in the future. The best rookies in 1987 were Mark McGwire, Kevin Seitzer, Devon White, Mike Greenwell, Terry Steinbach, Matt Nokes and Benito Santiago.

But look at some other rookies that year: Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, David Cone, Fred McGriff, Rafael Palmeiro, Ellis Burks, B.J. Surhoff, Paul O'Neill, Chuck Finley and Randy Myers. That doesn't even include some of the September call-ups who retained their rookie status into 1988: David Wells, Edgar Martinez, Jack McDowell, Ron Gant, Al Leiter and Jay Buhner.

So how good was the 2015 rookie crop? Check back in 15 years.