MLB Awards Watch: Top 5 AL Cy Young candidates thru April
5. Andrew Miller – 8/8 SVO, 0.00 ERA, 20 K
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The tall, lean southpaw deserves legitimate consideration at this point. After the New York Yankees started the regular season with a rather hush situation in the bullpen concerning their closer, Andrew Miller is showing manager Joe Girardi and everyone else that a committee in the ninth inning simply is not necessary.
Many thought Dellin Betances would own the closing job after his outstanding breakout campaign in 2014. But Betances is back to doing what he did best as a setup man for David Robertson in 2014, which is setting up Miller for saves in 2015.
The Yankees are paying Miller upper-tier money for a reliever at $9 million per season, so it only makes sense to allow him the chance to dominate hitters in the ninth and groom the 27-year-old Betances some more with eighth inning duties.
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Marlin Maniac
Not since 2003 when Eric Gagne took home the hardware has a relief pitcher won the award. In that season for Gagne, the Dodgers closer had as many saves (8) as Miller has now in the month of April, but did so in 13 appearances and 14.1 IP. Miller has only pitched 10 innings in April but all his other statistics look eerily similar to Gagne’s 2003 pace.
The Dodgers’ closer also had yet to allow an earned run, had a K/9 of 15.1, a K:BB ratio of 8.00 and a WHIP of 0.63. Miller’s K/9 of 15.88, a K:BB ratio of 5.00 and a WHIP of 0.62 are all generally inline with Gagne’s. Perhaps where Miller separates himself from Gagne’s historic April of 2003 year is in the oppositions inability to hit him. Gagne had a BAA of .125 in April of 2003. Miller’s so far sits at .081.
Of course, the likelihood of the BBWAA giving a relief pitcher a Cy Young has a lot to do with what starters have done that same year. When Gagne won, he did so quite easily over the player with the second most votes, Giants starter Jason Schmidt. Schmidt finished 2003 with a 17-5 record, a 2.34 ERA and 208 strikeouts. Those are by no means shabby numbers, but Miller has some stiffer competition early in 2015.
Make no mistake though — Miller’s name is in the conversation for this award. He is arguably the Yankees’ best player, both hitters and pitchers included, in 2015. Right now, his WAR of 0.8 is bested by only left fielder Brett Gardner (0.9) on the Yankees’ roster. That’s saying something for having only logged 11.1 innings of work so far in the month.
Next: Sonny Gray
4. Sonny Gray – 5 GS, 3-0, 1.98 ERA, 25 K
Bob Stanton-USA TODAY Sports
The youngest player on this list, 25-year-old Sonny Gray was excellent in 2014 as a 24-year-old in the Oakland Athletics’ rotation.
Gray was only drafted in 2011, albeit out of Vanderbilt University, but he is no aberration or one-season wonder. The scouting report has been out for some time on the youngster now and the competition still cannot find a successful approach to handling his stuff.
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FanSided
Last year in an American League that featured outstandingly steady performances from the likes of Kluber, Hernandez and Masahiro Tanaka, Gray managed to twice win the AL Pitcher of the Month award. The first came in April and the second in July, proving to any doubters that his consistency and endurance were not to be trifled with in his sophomore season.
This season, Gray’s hot start to the year is not far off from his 4-1 start with a 1.76 ERA a year ago. Gray has been an absolute workhorse in 2015 as well, coming in second in the AL for innings pitched with 36.1 through five starts. His 1.5 BB/9 manifests well above average command with his six total pitch offerings.
Four of Gray’s five outings have been of the quality start variety. Only once has he failed to record seven innings of work in a game, which came April 17 against the Royals when he pushed through six innings of ball using 102 pitches.
Next: Dallas Keuchel
3. Dallas Keuchel – 5 GS, 3-0, 0.73 ERA, 22 K
Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
“Fear the Beard” might have been coined by Giants pitcher Brian Wilson in 2010 and he unquestionably started the rugged, swashbuckler looking trend in the game as well. However, in 2015, no one is making hitters fear the beard more than the Houston Astros southpaw Dallas Keuchel.
The surprise Astros are 14-7 and in first place of the AL West. The Astros also eventually won the two games that Keuchel earned no-decisions in as well. The 27-year-old has been nearly flawless in his five starts, all of them quality ones. His fourth one included an extremely efficient 106 pitch shutout. He leads all AL starters in innings pitched, which is not all that shocking. Keuchel threw 200 IP in only 29 starts in 2014 and led the league with five complete games.
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Southside Showdown
Opponents are not hitting the ball very well or hard off Keuchel so far in 2015, either. The BAA him this season is .130, the lowest in the AL. His ability to keep balls coming off of bats low to the ground helps his cause dramatically. Keuchel is yet to give up a home run and his BAbip (.165) against ranks second amongst all MLB pitchers with a minimum of 20 IP.
While Keuchel and his beard’s league best ground ball percentage of 69.2 are doing wonders for his Cy Young contender status, his one shortcoming is that he does not strikeout a lot of batters. His K/9 of 5.35 in 2015 is down a touch from his career mark of 6.5. This can be overlooked by voters of the BBWAA if he stays on his current trajectory, however.
According to baseball-reference.com, Keuchel’s 1.9 WAR before his fifth start was tops amongst all position players and pitchers across MLB. His ERA to open the month with at least four starts is the lowest in Astros franchise history for April, besting Roger Clemens‘ previous mark of 1.05 in 2005.
Next: Felix Hernandez
2. Felix Hernandez – 5 GS, 4-0, 1.82 ERA, 36 K
Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports
King’s Court has been in full session at Safeco Field in 2015. Hernandez narrowly missed out on his second Cy Young in 2014, but so far this season, he does not have Kluber nipping at his heels again after the month of April.
Yet to lose in 2015, King Felix is 3-0 at home and last impressed Seattle’s home crowd faithful with a 102 pitch shutout of the Minnesota Twins on April 24. Not even 30 years in age yet, Hernandez is approaching a number of impressive career milestones that should be conquered this season if his health stays intact.
And there is no evidence to suggest the contrary, as the right-hander’s body seems custom built for his chosen profession. Hernandez in 2015 is aiming for his 10th consecutive season with over 190 IP.
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SoDo Mojo
By far the most well-known name on this list and as sure a Hall of Famer as there is active in the game today, Hernandez has it all. He strikes guys out at a high rate, he is consistent month-in-month-out and his plethora of plus pitches allows him to work deep into most ball games.
Hernandez’s fifth and final start of April came against the Texas Rangers. He picked up his fourth victory, going 6.2 innings strong allowing five hits and two earned runs. He simultaneously passed Jamie Moyer for most innings pitched in Mariners franchise history.
Hernandez cares deeply about his club and the city they represent, as the ace was almost apologetic to the fans when discussing his runner-up status last year to Kluber and felt like his 2014 performance was actually better than his 2010 one when he took home the hardware.
With that added motivation behind him in 2015 and an offense now featuring a scary Nelson Cruz, it should equate to more run support and thus wins for Hernandez in 2015. Look for his name to be in this same conversation come September. The King’s track record speaks for itself.
Next: Chris Archer
1. Chris Archer – 5 GS, 3-2, 0.84 ERA, 37 K
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
There’s a new ace in town, Alex Cobb. Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Chris Archer is off to an incredible start. The 26-year-old has a number of things going for him. He has a presence on the mound at 6-foot-3, power-pitching credentials with his strikeout totals and four very sustainable pitches, throwing only a slider and change-up as his off-speed offerings.
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Rum Bunter
Archer, despite also being right-handed, dominates left-handed hitters. In that regard, he a deviation from the norm. Lefties versus righties in 2014 hit .233 vs .259 against him. In 2015, Archer has limited right-handed hitters to a .147 BAA and .178 clip when facing lefties.
Only Keuchel’s WHIP of 0.73 edges out Archer’s 0.74 for best in the AL by a starting pitcher. But Archer’s K/9 of 10.3 makes Keuchel’s mark of 5.35 look rather un-impressive at the same time.
Archer is still relatively young and has not learned all the nuances of the game just yet, but the former sixth round draft pick is getting there.
Playing for a team that defends well and plays in a home park that favors pitching over hitting, Archer has that advantage to counteract his relative inexperience. He also has the stuff to compete for a pitching Triple Crown, something he shares in common with Hernandez, but which Keuchel and Gray lack the makings of right now.