American League pitching leaders at the All-Star break and Cy Young candidates
By Joel Wagler
With about 60 percent of the season already finished, the American League pitching leaders are firmly established. Some of the pitchers were expected to be on the leaderboard while others are surprises.
It's helped that many aging veterans like Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, Jacob DeGrom, and Gerrit Cole have either pitched very little, or not at all. That has allowed other names to emerge.
American League pitching leaders at the All-Star break
Below are the major pitching statistics and who are the top three players in each category:
STATS | FIRST | SECOND | THIRD |
|---|---|---|---|
INNINGS | Logan Gilbert - 132.1 | Seth Lugo - 127 | Jose Berrios - 119 |
WINS | Seth Lugo - 11 | Grayson Rodriguez - 11 | Luis Gil, Brayan Bello - 10 |
ERA | Tarik Skubal - 2.41 | Corbin Burnes - 2.43 | Seth Lugo - 2.48 |
WHIP | Logan Gilbert - 0.87 | Tarik Skubal - 0.88 | Garrett Crochet - 0.95 |
STRIKEOUTS | Garrett Crochet - 150 | Cole Ragans - 141 | Tarik Skubal - 140 |
K% | Garrett Crochet - 35.2 | Tarik Skubal - 30.8 | Cole Ragans - 29.6 |
BB% | Zach Efliin - 2.2 | George Kirby - 2.8 | Joe Ryan - 4.1 |
SAVES | Emmanuel Clase - 29 | Craig Kimbrel - 23 | Clay Holmes - 21 |
HOLDS | Yennier Cano - 24 | Bryan Abreu - 21 | David Robertson - 20 |
WAR | Garrett Crochet - 3.9 | Tarik Skubal - 3.5 | Cole Ragans/Tanner Houck - 3.4 |
The Royals' Seth Lugo is probably the most surprising name that pops up numerous times. Over the course of his first sevens years in the league, he spent six of those primarily as a reliever. Until 2023, he hadn't started more than seven games since his sophomore year. Now, in just his second year as a starter since then, he has found a groove, but he is also the most likely to tumble statistically because he's only 20 innings away from a career high.
Logan Gilbert is also a surprise as there are bigger names on his own staff, but he has been a steadfast member of the Mariners' rotation for a few years now and he seems to be coming into his own. Unfortunately, he probably is just on the outside looking in for the Cy Young award, but he could still be a factor down the stretch.
Who has the best chance to win the 2024 Cy Young award?
The two names that stand out in the above leaderboard are Tarik Skubal and Garrett Crochet. In fact, MGM Bet has Skubal listed as the favorite ate -150. Unfortunately, these two pitch for the two worst teams in the AL Central - the Tigers and the White Sox - which will cost them down the stretch if other pitchers on contending teams finish strong. Crochet is also a prime candidate to be traded, which could crush his chances if he heads to the NL.
Corbin Burnes has a good shot if he can maintain his current pace, and the Orioles are one of the best teams in the AL. Besides Lugo, the Royals have another dark horse candidate in Cole Ragans, but again, his team would need to make some noise over the last few months. He'd need to improve his overall numbers slightly to be a serious candidate.
Tanner Houck would also need to be considered a dark horse for the Red Sox. Now in his age 28 season, he is having by far his best all-around season and if Boston can stay deep in the hunt for a wild card spot, and he stays consistent, he'll garner some Cy Young votes for sure.
Even though the Tigers are out of the post-season picture, Skubal's dominant stats to this point give him the edge, but there are plenty of great "if" candidates that can emerge. Most of the top starters have 14 or 15 starts left to make their cases.
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