1. Clayton Kershaw – LAD
86.2 IP, 7-1, 1.56 ERA, 0.65 WHIP, 1.49 FIP, 105 SO, 5 BB, 3.7 WAR
The Claw is mowing down the competition. Few Dodgers fans would’ve thought during the 1960’s that their franchise would see a more dominant southpaw than Sandy Koufax playing baseball for them. Clayton Kershaw might just be that southpaw.
And forget southpaw. That’s too narrow a classification. Pitcher is a broader term and Kershaw is the best of his generation, possibly ever. Two years ago in 2014 he swept the awards podium with his third Cy and first ever MVP.
His 2016 campaign is shaping up to be his finest yet. So fine, there might not be a word with enough potency to describe what Kershaw is doing right now. In May, he dropped his ERA almost one full point and it now sits tied for first with Arrieta’s in NL rankings. With seven wins and over 100 strikeouts already, he’s a viable candidate to win his second Triple Crown in pitching, last accomplished in 2011 by Kershaw and Verlander.
Related Story: 5 biggest outlier seasons by active MLB hitters
His most staggering stat from 2016 is his current K:BB ratio. The best marks all-time by a starting pitcher since 1920 was Phil Hughes‘ 2014 season (11.63) and Bret Saberhagen‘s 1994 season (11.00). Hughes struck out 186 and walked 16 in his historic campaign, while Saberhagen K’d 143 and gave up 13 free passes in his.
Kid K is the only pitcher in MLB with over 100 punch outs this season. He has walked only FIVE batters all season. His current K:BB mark of 21.00 is unfathomable. If or when the Dodgers’ bats decide to wake up, it won’t matter. There won’t be a better NL MVP candidate on the club than Kershaw. Should Los Angeles qualify for postseason action, this ace of all aces will be the primary reason.
Next: Dustin Ackley to have season ending surgery
Clayton Kershaw presently leads all MLBers — pitchers and position players — with a WAR of 3.7. Multiply that number by three for his pace and it would equal 11.1 for the regular season, besting his previous personal best of 7.8 by over three full points. Virtually the only thing missing on the 28-year-old’s resume would be a World Series ring.