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MLB Awards Watch: Jake Arrieta challenges LA duo for NL Cy Young

By Brad Rowland

Aug 30, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jake Arrieta (49) reacts after thawing his final pitch of the ninth inning for a no hitter against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Cubs won 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 30, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jake Arrieta (49) reacts after thawing his final pitch of the ninth inning for a no hitter against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Cubs won 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /
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Houston Astros starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel (60) reacts after a pitch during the fourth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Houston Astros starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel (60) reacts after a pitch during the fourth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /

AL Cy Young

  1. Dallas Keuchel, Houston Astros – I don’t know how Keuchel is doing it, but he keeps performing. The left-hander is plagued (at least for me) by a lack of peripheral success in the same way that Zack Greinke is for the National League crown, but on the bright side for Keuchel, Clayton Kershaw and Jake Arrieta aren’t exactly present in the AL. As such, a league-leading 2.29 ERA is enough to buoy Keuchel to the front of the line, and the fantastic story that the Astros have proved to be will certainly help in the voting.
  2. David Price, Toronto Blue Jays – Price has been dominant for two different teams, and he remains criminally underrated. The talented left-hander boasts a 2.88 ERA to go along with a strikeout per inning, and Price is poised to zoom past 200 innings (196.1 right now) yet again. He isn’t the best in the league at any particular thing, but Price has no weaknesses in terms of his profile.
  3. Chris Sale, Chicago White Sox – Sale’s ERA (3.31) will kill him in the voting, but the rest of his profile is special. He easily leads the AL in strikeout rate (12.04 K/9) while possessing high-level control (1.80 BB/9), and Sale actually has the lowest FIP (2.50) in the league for good measure. That combination leads to a solid lead in fWAR among AL pitchers, and it is a shame that his ERA doesn’t line up this season.

Next: NL MVP

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