The Cy Young Award was Commissioner Ford Frick’s idea to honor the best pitcher in Major League Baseball. Hard lessons were learned by the Chalmers Award earlier in history so the recipients of the Cy Young Award were selected by the Baseball Writers Association of America from the beginning.
During the first eleven years (1956 – 1966), only one winner from Major League Baseball was selected. Immediately after Commissioner Frick retired, the rules were changed to honor the best pitcher from each league.
In the Cy Young Award vote, Jake Arrieta of the Cubs is the winner in the Nationals League while Dallas Keuchel does the same in the American League. Both pitchers won their respective league’s Wild Card Game with strong performances, in addition to being dominant in the regular season.
Max Scherzer is selected by the BBWAA as the American League’s Cy Young Award winner, receiving 28 of 30 writers’ first-place votes to finish ahead of Ranger ace Yu Darvish and Mariner starter Hisashi Iwakuma. The 29 year-old Tigers right-hander, who posted a 21-3 record with a 2.90 ERA in 32 starts for the pennant-winning club, joins Justin Verlander (2011), Denny McLain (1968-69), and Willie Hernandez (1984) as the fourth hurler to cop the prestigious pitching prize hurling for Detroit.
In one of the closest races to determine the American League Cy Young Award winner, Rays’ southpaw David Price (20-5, 2.56) outpoints last year’s recipient Tigers ace Justin Verlander (17-8, 2.64) by the slim margin of four points. The difference proves to be the one first-place vote given to the Tampa Bay left-hander’s teammate, closer Fernando Rodney.
Despite an unspectacular 13-12 record, Felix Hernandez is named the American League Cy Young Award winner ahead of Tampa Bay’s David Price (19-6) and New York’s CC Sabathia (21-7). King Felix’s league-leading 2.27 ERA and the lack of run support provided by the last-place Mariners made the Seattle ace an easy choice for the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, who placed him first on 21 of the 28 ballots cast.
Cliff Lee wins the 2008 American League Cy Young Award, taking 24 of 28 first-place votes. Lee went 22-3 with a 2.54 ERA for the Cleveland Indians. He led the league in ERA and wins. Lee is the second straight Indians left-hander to win the award, following CC Sabathia in 2007.
Given their postseason match-ups of the CYA candidates, many baseball observers are surprised when CC Sabathia (19-7, 3.21) beats out Red Sox ace Josh Beckett (20-7, 3.27) for the American League Cy Young Award. In the ALCS, the 27 year-old Indian southpaw faced Beckett twice and lost each time, but voting takes place at the end of the regular season.
Los Angeles Angels pitcher Bartolo Colón, who led the American League with 21 wins, receives the Cy Young Award. Colón is the second pitcher in Angels history to win the award. Dean Chance was the winner in 1964, back when there was one award for the two leagues. Colón receives 17 of 28 first-place votes cast and finishes with 118 points. Closer Mariano Rivera of the New York Yankees finishes second with 8 first-place votes and 68 points, while Johan Santana of the Minnesota Twins, who was the 2004 winner, is third with 3 first-place votes and 51 points.
Johan Santana (20-6, 265, 2.61), winning the American League top pitching honor with 28 first-place votes, becomes the 18th unanimous Cy Young winner selected by the BBWAA. The 25 year-old Venezuelan southpaw joins Jim Perry (1970) and Frank Viola (1988) as the only Twin hurlers to earn the award.
A’s southpaw Barry Zito (23-5, 2.75) is selected as the American League Cy Young Award winner by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. The 24 year-old sophomore, who led the AL in wins, out points Red Sox right-hander Pedro Martinez, 114 to 96.
2001 – New York Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens, who posted a 20-3 record with 213 strikeouts and a 3.51 ERA, wins the American League Cy Young Award for an unprecedented sixth time. Previously, Clemens captured the award with the Red Sox in 1986, 1987 and 1991, and the Blue Jays in 1997 and 1998. He becomes the first Yankees pitcher to win the award since 1978 when Ron Guidry copped the honor. In the 2004 season, Clemens will win his seventh Cy Young in the National League with the Houston Astros.
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