The NL Cy Young Award Contenders
Posted by Lance Baker on 28th August 2009
This has been one of the better seasons of baseball pitching in recent memory, and it’s an exciting time to be a baseball fan. Let’s have a look at the pitchers leading the charge in the National League, to see who may have a shot at the coveted Cy Young award.
Dan Haren. Haren’s WHIP of 0.89 is the best in baseball, and his 2.59 ERA isn’t too far behind. While he plays for a team that’s out of contention, Haren has been a benchmark of consistency for most of the season.
Consistently one of the best pitchers in baseball during the past few years, Haren has brought it to another level in 2009, as his opposition is batting just .202. He’s slowed down a bit as of late, which may hurt his chances from here.
Wandy Rodriguez. Before getting shelled his last time out, Wandy had given up just four total earned runs in seven starts since the beginning of July. This has lowered his ERA to a ridiculously low total, and if he keeps up this pace, who knows where he’ll be at the end of the year.
Matt Cain. Cain’s 12-4 record, 2.44 ERA, and 1.17 WHIP are generally overlooked because of Tim Lincecum’s out of control numbers, but Cain’s season is simply one of the best in baseball. An ERA of 2.44 is one of the best of the decade, and Cain’s terrific season is largely the reason for the Giants’ contention in the NL West.
Chris Carpenter (12-3, 2.27 ERA, 0.98 WHIP). Who knew that Carpenter still had it. One of the best pitchers in baseball just a few years ago, Carpenter missed nearly all of 2007 and 2008, and most of the baseball world either forgot about him or wrote him off. At 34 years old, Carpenter looks as good as ever before, with what has been an incredible season of pitching so far. Carpenter has amazingly surrendered just 19 walks in 130 innings pitched, one of the reasons for his career low 2.27 ERA. It’s no coincidence the Cardinals lead their division.
Tim Lincecum. Since last year, Lincecum has emerged as the new dominant pitcher in baseball. No one can strike batters out like he can, and his league-high 205 strikeouts back this up. If this wasn’t enough, he also has the best ERA in the majors, at 2.19. Lincecum is the front runner for the award at this point in time.
In addition to the pitchers above, there are a few other pitchers in the midst of exceptional seasons who could very easily contend for the award with a strong finish in August and September. These pitchers include the likes of Johan Santana, Adam Wainwright, Josh Johnson, Clayton Kershaw, and Javier Vazqeuz. Each of their seasons easily could have won the award in prior seasons. Should be an interesting finish.
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