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MLB Awards Watch: Cy Young races

By Nicholas Ian Allen

June 6, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer (31) throws in the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
June 6, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer (31) throws in the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jun 15, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale (41) pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 15, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale (41) pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Chris Sale, Boston Red Sox

The most valuable pitcher in the big leagues is Chris Sale, and it’s not even close. Through his first 16 starts for the Red Sox, Sale has amassed an impressive 4.7 fWAR, 1.3 wins better than No. 2 Max Scherzer. Looking only at the American League, Sale has been worth 2.1 wins more than second place Michael Fulmer.

Sale is 10-3 with a 2.77 ERA in a big league high 113.2 innings. The 27-year-old lefty has struck out 155 hitters, which is more than any other pitcher in baseball, and he leads the majors among qualified starters with a 35.2 percent strikeout rate (Scherzer’s is 35.0 percent, a drop of 0.3 percent after his start Tuesday night). Sale also leads the big leagues in WHIP (0.906), FIP (2.05), strikeouts per nine innings (12.3) and strikeouts per walk (7.38) among qualified starters.

To say the move to Boston has been a good one for Sale would be an understatement. He has allowed just 6.5 hits per nine innings, 0.7 home runs per nine and 1.7 walks per nine in a Red Sox uniform, all of which would be the best of his career as a starting pitcher.

A five-time All-Star in eight MLB seasons, Sale has yet to finish better than third in the AL Cy Young Award vote, though he has finished among the top six vote getters in each of the last five seasons. With such a big lead in WAR compared to his peers, along with his traditional statistics, he’s the overwhelming favorite to take home the hardware for the first time.

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