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Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers and Chris Sale of the Atlanta Braves had been the very best pitchers in Main League Baseball in the course of the 2024 season, they usually had been rewarded accordingly Wednesday.
Skubal took dwelling the American League Cy Younger award over fellow finalists Seth Lugo of the Kansas Metropolis Royals and Emmanuel Clase of the Cleveland Guardians, whereas Sale received the Nationwide League Cy Younger over finalists Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Zack Wheeler of the Philadelphia Phillies.
Skubal received his in unanimous style.
MLB Community @MLBNetwork
Chris Sale secures his first profession Cy Younger Award in his first season in Atlanta!
He joins 4 Corridor of Famers and @Braves greats to win the award. pic.twitter.com/f6VQsuMTsG
Bob Nightengale @BNightengale
The official NL Cy Younger balloting pic.twitter.com/mQ8ZelyCSI
MLB Community @MLBNetwork
Tarik Skubal is the 2024 AL Cy Younger Award winner! pic.twitter.com/m9Bzm2qwrJ
FOX Sports activities: MLB @MLBONFOX
UNANIMOUS 🙌
Tarik Skubal obtained ALL 30 first place votes for AL Cy Younger!! pic.twitter.com/IznhTMDdZo
There was an American League Central theme within the AL Cy Younger race, which was becoming since three of the ultimate 4 groups within the AL playoffs got here from the division.
Skubal’s particular person brilliance was a serious cause the Tigers reached the postseason for the primary time in a decade, as he completed with the AL Triple Crown for pitching with 18 wins, a 2.39 ERA and 228 strikeouts. He additionally posted a glowing 0.92 WHIP and led the league with a 2.50 FIP and 170 ERA+, per Baseball Reference.
His potential to mix-and-match a fastball that hits triple digits with a group of pitches that features a changeup, slider and knuckle-curve made him practically unhittable and propelled the Tigers into October.
Skubal wasn’t the one one who was practically unhittable within the division, as Clase completed with an 0.61 ERA, 0.66 WHIP, 66 strikeouts and a league-best 47 saves in 74.1 innings this season for the Guardians.
Whereas he struggled within the American League Championship Collection loss to the New York Yankees, this can be a regular-season award. It’s a testomony to his particular person efficiency that he grew to become the primary reliever to be named a Cy Younger finalist since Francisco Rodríguez was in 2008.
Clase’s Guardians and Skubal’s Tigers had been joined within the postseason by Lugo and the Royals thanks largely to the veteran right-hander’s potential to anchor Kansas Metropolis’s workers.
He tallied a 3.00 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 181 strikeouts in 206.2 innings in his age-34 season whereas making his first profession All-Star Recreation. After beforehand pitching for the New York Mets and San Diego Padres, he joined the Royals forward of the 2024 marketing campaign and instantly delivered within the American League even when he did not put up Triple Crown numbers like Skubal.
Sale did, although, on the Nationwide League aspect of issues.
The Braves’ ace led the NL in wins (18), ERA (2.38) and strikeouts (225) whereas additionally placing up a league-best 2.09 FIP and 174 ERA+ in 177.2 innings, per Baseball Reference. The eight-time All-Star was at his greatest in his first season within the NL after beforehand suiting up for the Chicago White Sox and Boston Purple Sox.
Sadly for Atlanta, a again harm sidelined him for the ultimate week of the regular-season and the group’s NL Wild Card Collection loss to the Padres, however he nonetheless exceeded all reasonable expectations for 2024.
He wasn’t the one NL pitcher to make headlines, as Skenes lived as much as and exceeded the overwhelming hype in his rookie marketing campaign for the Pirates. Whereas he did not make his debut till Might 11 and pitched simply 133 innings, the flamethrower posted an 11-3 document with a 1.96 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 170 strikeouts.
Skenes figures to be the face of the franchise in Pittsburgh for years to come back and began off his profession in spectacular style, ending third whereas incomes a second-place vote within the last outcomes.
Wheeler has been beneath the highlight for for much longer and completed second in Cy Younger voting in 2021 and sixth in 20223 throughout earlier seasons for the Phillies. All he did in 2024 was tally a 2.57 ERA, league-best 0.96 WHIP and 224 strikeouts in 200 innings whereas serving to information his group to a division title.
All six finalists had been standouts all through the season, however solely two may take dwelling the awards. And that’s precisely what Skubal and Sale did.
