Even as relievers have taken on more responsibilities and teams have begun building their ninth-inning relievers, the Cy Young Award remains the domain of the ace starter.
Only one reliever has won the Cy Young since 1993, and Eric Gagne had to go 55-for-55 to save the Los Angeles Dodgers’ chances of winning NL hardware in 2003. A reliever hasn’t finished higher than third in the voting since 2008, when Francisco Rodriguez of the Los Angeles Angels had a record 62 saves en route to finishing third in the AL voting.
A top-3 finish is likely to be at least one reliever this season, but again, two outstanding pitchers – one fresh off an ace start and the other putting together a surprising late-season revival that has taken him back. Hall of Fame interview — will be receiving hugs and cheers from family and friends on MLB Network in late November.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
TARIK SKUBAL (18-4, 2.39 ERA, 228 ERA, 228) looked like he was going to win the award for much of the summer because the sheer number of his numbers — he’s on pace to win the AL Triple Crown — would have dwarfed his vision. ‘I won in the second division team. But Skubal was at his best in his nine starts, a stretch in which he went 6-0 with a 1.94 ERA as the Tigers went 30-14 to close out their first playoff appearance since 2014.
Before completing Skubal’s kick, Caretaker closer EMMANUEL CLASE (4-2, 0.62 ERA, 46 saves) had a bad Cy Young offense as the bullpen anchor of the division winner who won 45 games by two runs or less. Grade has 4.4 WAR, according to Baseball-Reference, a number surpassed only by Jonathan Papelbon (5.0 WAR in 2006) among closers this century.
Despite a seven-game losing streak in the past four weeks, the Royals may be tied for the first time since 2015 with SETH LUGO (16-9, 3.03 ERA, 178 strikeouts) and COLE RAGANS (11- 9, 3.14 ERA, 223 strikeouts). The two rank second and third behind Skubal in WAR among AL pitchers and are among the top 10 in ERA and innings pitched.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
September 19, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Chris Sale (51) pitches against the Cincinnati Reds in the fourth inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Photos by Katie Stratman-Imagn CHRIS SALE (18-3, 2.38 ERA, 225 strikeouts) received AL Cy Young votes and made the All-Star team every year from 2012 to 2018, but this is the most impressive Cy Young appearance in memory as it’s a whole life. achievement award. Sale may have won the NL Triple Crown for the Braves at age 35 while throwing more innings than he did while battling more injuries in the previous four seasons combined (151). The long-awaited addition of Cy Young to his trophy case comes as Sale surpasses 50.0 in career WAR, behind only the Hall of Fame-bound trio of Justin Verlander, Clayton Kershaw and Max Scherzer, all of whom recently passed away. their jobs. Sale has a better chance of joining Cooperstown than he did last year at this time.
ZACK WHEELER (16-7, 2.56 ERA, 213 hits) has a chance to finish second to Sale in all three divisions of the Triple Crown, making this the second Cy Young finish for Wheeler since 2021, when he lost. Cy Young because he had an ERA a third of a run higher than Corbin Burnes in 46 1/3 more innings.
The race for third place will be a strange one. Will the voters reward the quick genius of Pirates rookie PAUL SKENES (11-3, 1.99 ERA, 167 strikeouts), who ranks only behind Sale in WAR despite throwing just 122 innings? Will fellow rookie SHOTA IMANAGA (15-3, 2.91 ERA, 174 strikeouts) be welcomed with a seamless transition to the majors following eight years in Japan? Or are relievers TANNER SCOTT (9-5, 1.51 ERA, 22 saves) and RYAN HELSLEY (7-4, 2.09 ERA, 47 saves) considered after contrasting standout seasons?