This is a year where a number of arms, or elbows for that matter, have come to die. Jarrod Parker, Martin Perez, Matt Moore, Matt Harvey, Brandon Beachy, Ivan Nova, ...go ahead, get comfortable, Kris Medlen, AJ Griffin, Josh Johnson, Patrick Corbin, Jose Fernandez and many more have all had to undergo the dreaded Tommy John surgery in the last year. It is undoubtedly a problem that needs to find a solution.
Even with all these pitchers going down, there are still plenty of promising beginnings to the season for a number of pitchers. Lets take a look at some of the early NL and AL Cy Young award contenders.
NL Cy Young:
A. Adam Wainwright, SP, St. Louis Cardinals (7-2, 1.85 ERA)
Consistency at it's finest. Wainwright has had a winning season and at least 11 wins each year from 2008 on. His ERA has never risen above 4.00 and has been under 3.00 for three of those seasons. It always seems like the Red Birds have one of the top pitching staffs in the league, and that staff is anchored by Wainwright. Teams are hitting .185 against him and he is also the owner of an impressive 0.86 WHIP. He is one of only two NL starting pitchers with a sub 2.00 ERA - the other being Johnny Cueto (1.86 ERA). The big right-hander for the Cardinals finished second in Cy Young voting last season to Kershaw. But, with Kershaw not looking like the same guy and already missing time, the NL Cy Young award is Wainwright's to lose.
B. Zack Greinke, SP, Los Angeles Dodgers (7-1, 2.01 ERA)
Through ten starts this season Greinke is 7-1 and has 65 strikeouts through only 58.1 innings pitched. Opponents are hitting .236 against Greinke and it looks like he is continuing on from his solid 2013 season. His season wasn't a full one last year as he missed time after an altercation with Carlos Quentin. That shortened season was still good enough for Greinke to finish eighth in 2013 NL Cy Young voting. As I said before, the award is Wainwright's to lose. Yet, if Greinke and the Dodgers can keep up the pace, his name will be given serious consideration.
C. Johnny Cueto, SP, Cincinnati Reds (4-3, 1.86 ERA)
Sure, Cueto only has four wins to this point in the season. He also has the most strikeouts in the Major Leagues (82) and leads the league in innings pitched (77.1). The Reds are off to an underwhelming start at 21-24 and Cueto hasn't gotten the run support he needs to this point. He was on a blistering pace in his first nine starts, putting up historic numbers by going at least seven innings while allowing two runs or less in each of those outings. This is a streak that hasn't been seen for 105 years. Record is usually a big indicator of the Cy Young winner, but last year Kerhshaw proved that you can win a Cy Young with a 16-9 record if you keep your ERA under 2.00: something that Cueto could possibly duplicate.
Honorable Mentions: Julio Teheran, SP-ATL; Kyle Lohse, SP-MIL; Madison Bumgarner, SP-SF
AL Cy Young:
A. Max Scherzer, SP, Detroit Tigers (6-1, 2.59 ERA)
Last season's Cy Young winner has to have a slight edge on the competition up to this point. Mad Max has an American League-leading 78 strikeouts in 66 innings pitched. His 78-to-22 K/BB ratio is respectable, but I also expect that number on the right to significantly slow down going forward. Last season he finished with a crazy 240-to-56 K/BB ratio, something that Scherzer should be able to duplicate. If the Tigers once again finish as the best team in the AL come season's end, that just bolsters Scherzer's bid to repeat.
B. Felix Hernandez, SP, Seattle Mariners (6-1, 2.75 ERA)
What is this? King Felix is getting run support? That run support is leading to wins? Run support is something that he has not had since 2009. After so many seasons of next to zero run support, this may be the year that his fortune turns around and he flirts with a 20-win season. His 74-to-14 K/BB ratio is very impressive. He has been one of the most dominant pitchers of this era and already has a Cy Young award on his shelf, winning the award in 2010. The Mariners are trying to be competitive, and if they can find a way to make the playoffs or even be in contention come playoff time, Felix could be getting his second Cy Young Award.
C & C1. Sonny Gray, SP, Oakland Athletics (5-1, 1.99 ERA)/ Masahiro Tanaka (6-1, 2.39 ERA)
There was no way either of these guys could be left off the top three contenders, so the get to share the spot. It's easy, Sonny Gray is the best pitcher on the best team in baseball right now. His curve ball is next to untouchable, and he is the only starting pitcher in the American League with an ERA under 2.00 - even if it is only by one-hundredth of a point.
As far as Tanaka goes, his 73-to-8 K/BB ratio is incredible as he has been as advertised since coming to the United States. He has stuff that is good enough to be dominant all season long, and he may just do like Jose Fernandez did and take the Rookie of the Year award while just missing the Cy Young. People are usually hesitant to give two prestigious awards to one player, but Tanaka could be deserving when all is said and done.
Honorable Mentions: Yu Darvish, SP-TEX; James Shields, SP-KC; Chris Sale, SP-CHW; Greg Holland, CP-KC; Mark Buehrle, SP-TOR (Buehrle is first pitcher to 8 wins, but he can't keep this up, right?)
Agree or disagree? Let us know in the comments!
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