MLB Awards: Top Contenders for AL Cy Young Award

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Now that we have reached the end of the MLB regular season, it is time to look ahead to awards season. Let’s begin with the American League Cy Young award race.

Throughout the 2017 MLB season, there have been some impressive pitching performances around the game. Pitchers came out of nowhere to emerge as staff aces, and players previously left for dead have resurrected themselves as viable options. Then there were those pitchers who performed well last season, only to fall apart this year and struggle to find themselves along the way.

Over the course of the year, various pitchers had hot stretches. Jason Vargas looked like a contender for the American League Cy Young award at the start of the year, returning from Tommy John surgery to put together an incredible first half of the season. However, he faltered over the second half, dropping out of contention. Meanwhile, Sonny Gray has been excellent since joining the Yankees, but his overall body of work leaves him on the outside looking in.

The Cy Young award is given to the best pitcher in the league. While that may be a pitcher who had an excellent month, or even half of the year, it is an award for putting together a complete season. And there have been a couple of great ones in the American League this year.

Who walks away with the 2017 American League Cy Young award? Here are our projections.

5. Craig Kimbrel: Boston Red Sox

Craig Kimbrel was expected to be the final piece for the Red Sox last year. Instead, he struggled, leading some to wonder if his time as one of the elite MLB closers had come and gone. He answered that with a resounding no, as he rebounded back to form.

Last season, while Kimbrel posted 31 saves and made the All Star Game, he was not the same closer. His ERA jumped to a career worst 3.40, and he lost his command. While he struck out 14.1 batters per nine innings, he had a 5.1 BB/9 rate. It was certainly a concerning performance, especially as Kimbrel was expected to solidify the Red Sox bullpen.

Finding his comfort level in his second season in Boston, Kimbrel looked like the dominant force he had been with the Braves. He recorded 35 saves, while posting a 1.32 ERA and a 0.662 WHiP. In his 68 innings, he struck out 123 batters while issuing only 14 walks. A year after his worst performance, he put together what may have been his best season.

That career year came at the right time. As the Red Sox offense was generally mediocre, and sorely missed David Ortiz, a lot of pressure was placed upon the pitching staff. Kimbrel made sure that the ninth inning was typically worry free, helping Boston clinch the American League East.

Craig Kimbrel had a great season. While that should help him become the Reliever of the Year in the AL, he is still a distant fifth in the Cy Young vote.

4. Marcus Stroman: Toronto Blue Jays

Marcus Stroman was unable to build off of his impressive rookie campaign, having torn his ACL during the following Spring Training. This year, he finally got back on track, doing so in an impressive way.

Much like Craig Kimbrel, the fifth place finisher on my ballot, Stroman did not look right last year. He would have moments of brilliance, but was unable to sustain that inning to inning, let alone game to game. His 9-10 record, along with his 4.37 ERA and 1.289 WHiP, mirrored those inconsistencies.

This season, Stroman emerged as the ace of the Blue Jays. In a far cry from his performance last season, he posted an excellent 13-8 record with a 3.06 ERA and a 1.299 WHiP. In his 197 innings, Stroman allowed only 61 walks while striking out 162 batters. It is safe to say that he is back to the form that made him one of the top young arms in the game.

Although the Blue Jays struggled this year, Stroman’s performance was a positive. He is starting to look like a staff ace, a pitcher that Toronto could build around. As he is just entering arbitration, Stroman could be a key part of the Blue Jays rotation for years to come.

Marcus Stroman started to look like the pitcher the Toronto Blue Jays expected him to be. This could be only the beginning.

3. Luis Severino: New York Yankees

In order for the New York Yankees to contend in 2017, they needed one of their pitchers to step up and become a viable option behind Masahiro Tanaka. Luis Severino proved to be the surprising answer.

In spending most of the 2016 campaign in the majors, Severino struggled. He split his time between the rotation and the bullpen, unable to build upon a promising 11 game stint in 2015. Although he was only 22 years old, his 5.83 ERA and 1.451 WHiP led to questions about his future role with New York.

This season, Severino emphatically proved that he belongs in the rotation. The 23 year old made his first All Star Game, and continued his excellent performance throughout the year. Overall, he posted a 14-6 record with a 2.98 ERA and a 1.040 WHiP. Severino also improved his walk and strikeout rates, with 51 walks and 230 strikeouts in his 193.1 innings this season.

With the uncertainty surrounding the Yankees rotation next season, as Tanaka may opt out of his contract, and CC Sabathia is set to become a free agent, Severino could not have timed his ascension any better. New York will need pitchers to build around, and Severino has the potential to be exactly that type of starter. He has started to look like a potential ace, which the Yankees desperately needed.

Luis Severino may have had the most surprising campaign of all the pitchers on this list. However, if 2017 is any indication, he could be a perennial Cy Young contender for years to come.

2. Chris Sale: Boston Red Sox

Chris Sale has made quite the impression with the Boston Red Sox. However, his best season may not be enough for the Cy Young award.

Sale had already established himself as a star with Chicago before changing his Sox in the offseason. He had made five consecutive All Star Games, and earned Cy Young votes each year. A formidable strikeout artist with impeccable command, Sale was expected to help lead the Boston rotation and become their desperately needed ace.

He more than lived up to the billing this season. Despite a severe lack of run support at the start of the year, Sale continued to dominate. He posted a 17-8 record with a 2.90 ERA and a 0.970 WHiP. In his league leading 214.1 innings, he issued just 43 walks while striking out 308 batters. In doing so, he became the first American League pitcher since Pedro Martinez in 1999 to strike out 300 batters in a season, and the second member of the Red Sox to do so.

After the David Price Debacle, and Rock Porcello reverting back to a middle of the rotation starter this season, Boston needed Sale to step up. He did exactly that, showing Red Sox fans that he was worth the price it took to bring him on board. They now have a true ace, a dependable option that can take the ball every fifth day and dominate.

Yet, as impressive as Chris Sale was, there was a pitcher who was even better…

1. Corey Kluber: Cleveland Indians

Corey Kluber has been a force over the past few years. Based on his performance this season, he is looking at adding a second Cy Young award to his resume.

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One of the best MLB pitchers, Kluber helped lead the Indians to the World Series last year. Although he finished third in the Cy Young vote, he finally made an All Star Game and proved that his 2014 campaign was not a fluke. With the Indians unfinished business in the postseason, Kluber was looking to do even better this season.

Although Cleveland had their struggles at times this year, Kluber remained one of the top pitchers in the game. He led the American League with 18 wins, a 2.27 ERA, and a 0.861 WHiP. His 262 strikeouts were second to Chris Sale. Kluber also led AL pitchers with a 7.8 WAR, far outpacing Sale and Justin Verlander for the lead.

One has to wonder how much longer Kluber’s run of dominance can last. He really did not establish himself as a top MLB starter until he was 28 years old. Now that he is starting to get to the end of his prime, he may only have a few more years of excellence left. But if Cleveland can win that elusive World Series this year, Kluber’s legacy will be cemented for Indians faithful. Adding a second Cy Young award would only further his stature.

Next: Phillies revolving bullpen

Right now, the American League Cy Young award appears destined to return to Cleveland. Corey Kluber, by almost any measure, was the best pitcher in the AL, and deserving of the Cy Young.

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