A month ago, I listened to a podcast show and in the show, a guest indicated that a pitcher deserved more attention. The reason why she said that is because that pitcher used to finish 2nd in the Cy Young voting and he’s been one of the most reliable pitchers in the majors.
We might remember the Cy Young award winners. However, it could be quite difficult to recall the pitchers who finished second in the Cy Young award voting. After listening to the podcast show, I decided to check on the great baseball reference website to see if those pitchers pitch well after finishing second in the Cy Young award voting.
To make things easier, let’s quickly take a look at those pitchers who finished second in the Cy Young voting from 2020 to 2023.
Firstly, in 2020, Kenta Maeda finished 2nd in the AL Cy Young voting and in the NL, Yu Darvish was the second in the Cy Young voting. Kenta Maeda owned a 2.70 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP over 66.2 innings and Darvish posted a 2.01 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP over 76 innings. These 2 Japanese pitchers did pitch well in 2020. However, their careers were quite different over the last 3 seasons. Maeda missed the entire 2022 season because of recovering from Tommy John surgery. In 2021 and 2023, he owned an ERA over 4 each season. Yu Darvish was traded to the Padres after the 2020 season. From 2021 to 2023, Darvish tossed 497.1 innings for the Padres, posting a 3.87 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP.
In addition, in 2021, Gerrit Cole was the second in the AL Cy Young voting and Zack Wheeler was very close to winning the NL Cy Young award. Cole earned 16 wins in 2021, posting a 3.23 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP over 181.1 innings. Cole had a 3.50 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP in 2022. Last season, Cole was outstanding. He owned a 2.63 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP over 209 innings. And Cole won the 2023 AL Cy Young award. Moreover, Wheeler finished the 2021 season with a 2.78 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP over 213.1 innings. In 2022, he owned a 2.82 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP over 153 innings. Last season, Wheeler made 32 starts, posting a 3.61 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP.
In 2022, Dylan Cease was the second in the AL Cy Young voting and in the NL, Max Fried finished second in the Cy Young voting. Cease posted a 2.20 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP over 184 innings in 2022 and last season, his ERA was over 4.50 and his WHIP was over 1.40. At the same time, Max Fried owned a 2.55 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP last year. However, he only made 14 starts because of injuries. In 2022, Fried posted a 2.48 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP over 185.1 innings.
Finally, in 2023, Sonny Gray finished 2nd in the AL Cy Young voting and Logan Webb was the second in the NL Cy Young voting. Gray owned a 2.79 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP over 184 innings. Meanwhile, Logan Webb posted a 3.25 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP across 216 innings.
When we look at those pitchers who finished second in the Cy Young voting so far this decade, Gerrit Cole is the only one who later on won the Cy Young award. It’s not easy to pitch in the majors. Winning a Cy Young award is a great achievement. But finishing second in the voting isn’t that bad. By far this season, Zack Wheeler has 3 quality starts and his ERA is under 2.00. Moreover, Dylan Cease now posts an ERA below 2.50 and he has 2 quality starts. It’s just the beginning of the 2024 season. It will be worthwhile to see whether they stay healthy and pitch consistently during the regular season. Furthermore, will one of them move forward in the Cy Young award voting?
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