Ranking the top 5 NL Cy Young contenders following Justin Steele's latest masterpiece

The National League MVP Award is one that's captivated the baseball world with Ronald Acuna Jr. and Mookie Betts seemingly swapping places in first and second every other night. Underratedly, the NL Cy Young race is just as exciting with five legitimate candidates.

The Chicago Cubs have surprised many with their 74-64 record, and they find themselves in the second Wild Card spot with less than one month to go. They're closer to the top Wild Card spot and to the NL Central-leading Brewers than they are to falling out of the race, which puts them in a great position to make the postseason for the first time since 2018.

One of the reasons the Cubs have been able to have this great year is because of their emerging ace, Justin Steele. The 28-year-old had his breakout last season with a 1.48 ERA in eight second-half starts, and has seen that carry over into this season as he's been one of the National League's best pitchers. He's without a doubt supplanted himself into the top five of the Cy Young race. Here's what those rankings would look like.

5) Ranking the top 5 NL Cy Young contenders: Zac Gallen of the Arizona Diamondbacks

Another surprising team in the NL this season has been the Diamondbacks, and Zac Gallen is a huge reason why. The right-hander finished fifth in the NL Cy Young balloting last season and is on track to do the same again with another fantastic year.

Gallen has gone 14-7 with a 3.48 ERA in a league-leading 29 starts and 178.2 innings pitched. He's third in innings pitched, fifth in strikeouts, fifth in WHIP, and seventh in ERA in the National League.

If this list was made just a couple of weeks ago, Gallen might've been first on the list. He had a 3.11 ERA after delivering six strong innings against the Rangers on August 22, but two rough starts since have him falling down the rankings.

Gallen has emerged as one of the better pitchers not only in the National League but in all of baseball, and he'll continue to lead the Diamondbacks for years to come.