MLB Cy Young Race: Ranking the Top Five Candidates in the AL and NL

MLB Cy Young Race: Ranking the Top Five Candidates in the AL and NL

By late August, we've usually got a solid idea about who is going to win the American League and National League Cy Young awards. The Cy Young award goes to the best pitcher in each league. Most of the time, a starting pitcher wins the award, but there have been times when a reliever has snuck in and won. Here are the top five candidates in each league to win this prestigious pitching award.

Ranking the National League Cy Young Candidates

5. Edwin Diaz, Mets (+6000) Bet $100 to win $6000)

Edwin Diaz has 28 saves with the New York Mets this season. He's holding a 1.46 ERA with 97 strikeouts in just 49.1 innings of work. Diaz is clearly the most dominant closer and went on a long streak in the middle of the season without giving up a run.

He deserves recognition, but won't exactly win the award.

4. Max Fried, Braves (+1600) (Bet $100 to win $1600)

Max Fried finished last regular season with over 10 straight quality starts. He started the 2022 season right where he left off. He's currently 12-4 with a 2.52 ERA on the season for the Braves and has helped push Atlanta near the top of the NL East.

The left-hander is one of the most reliable starters in the league and deserves recognition as well.

3. Corbin Burnes, Brewers (+2500) (Bet $100 to win $2500)

Burnes is currently 9-6 with a 2.84 ERA on the season. The Brewers just lost his last start to the Dodgers with Tony Gonsolin starting. So as you could imagine, Burnes is third on the list, because that other guy is second.

2. Tony Gonsolin, Dodgers (+600) (Bet $100 to win $600)

Gonsolin is 16-1 on the season with a 2.10 ERA. This type of record is basically unheard of. He hasn't been the best pitcher in the league but continues to find a way out of jams and limits damage so well.

For that, Gonsolin gets second place.

1. Sandy Alcantara, Marlins (-250) (Bet $250 to win $100)

Sandy Alcantara doesn't have 16 wins but he's 11-6 with a 2.19 ERA on the season. I know, his ERA is worse than Gonsolin, but he's pitched way more innings and has thrown a complete game multiple times this year. That gives him the number one spot in the NL to win the Cy Young.

NL Cy Young Odds

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Ranking the American League Cy Young Candidates

5. Alek Manoah, Blue Jays (+7000) Bet $100 to win $7000)

Alek Manoah has been very impressive for the Blue Jays. He's 12-6 with a 2.66 ERA on the season and only has a WHIP of 1.04. He's got a great demeanor to him and he's cocky and confident to go with it.

That clearly helps him perform on the mound. He's been huge for the Blue Jays this season and gets the five spot in these American League rankings.

4. Shohei Ohtani, Angels (+5000) Bet $100 to win $5000)

Shohei Ohtani is 10-8 with a 2.83 ERA on the season. Oftentimes, he's a bit inconsistent, but when he's on his game, he's essentially unhittable. It's got to be really hard being in his position, trying to pitch and hit in each game.

If he was able to just focus on pitching, he'd probably be at the top of this list. But it is what it is. Ohtani is fourth in these rankings.

3. Shane McClanahan, Rays (+1200) Bet $100 to win $1200)

McClanahan was projected to win the AL Cy Young at the all-star break. Since then, he's kind of fallen off. His strikeout rate is much lower and he's been allowing more runs here and there.

Still, he has a 2.29 ERA with an 11-5 record. He's also sitting pretty with a .86 WHIP. I'm not sure if he can get back in the race, but he's had a tremendous season.

2. Dylan Cease, White Sox (+900) Bet $100 to win $900)

They say you can't win an AL Cy Young in just half of a season. But Cease has really turned it on in the second half of the season. He's 12-6 on the season with a 2.27 ERA. His WHIP is still very high at 1.17 but he had a .33 ERA in June and a .76 ERA in July to help him jump over McClanahan in the AL Cy Young rankings.

1. Justin Verlander, Astros (-400) (Bet $400 to win $100)

Is Justin Verlander ever going to age? He wasn't supposed to come back from injury and pitch this well. He's 16-3 with a 1.87 ERA on the season. He leads the league in ERA and also leads the league in WHIP, holding a .85 number.

As long as he continues to put up these types of numbers, he'll end up winning another AL Cy Young. This time, at age 39. Crazy.

AL Cy Young Odds

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