Pitchers Justin Verlander and Sandy Alcantara won the Cy-Young Trophies in the American and National Leagues, respectively, on Wednesday.
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The pair became the first since 1968 to be elected unanimously.
Despite being penniless in his 39 years, Verlander authored another exceptional season, allowing the Houston Astros to win the World Series. The American worked very hard after recovering from Tommy John type surgery.
This is the third Cy-Young for Verlander to make the all-time top 10 in this category. The candidacy of the veteran was very strong, leading the American with 18 wins and a 1.75 earned run average.
Toronto Blue Jays gunner Alec Manoh was also named, as was Dylan Seas (Chicago White Sox), and he was expected to be the successor to former teammate Robbie Ray, who won the previous year before accepting a generous offer from the Seattle Mariners. came close. The sophomore pitcher continued his 2021 successes and became the Jays’ rotation ace.
The 24-year-old Floridian went 16-7 with a 2.24 ERA. Manoh’s outstanding season was capped off with his first career invitation to the All-Star Game.
First Cy-Young in Miami
Miami Marlins pitcher Sandy Alcantara replaces Corbin Burns of the Milwaukee Brewers. The 27-year-old right-hander is also the first Cy Young winner in franchise history.
In a very touching moment, he got the news just as his family was gathered at his home. Alcantara is only the third Dominican player to win the trophy, after Bartolo Colón and Pedro Martínez. It was the latter who revealed the name of the winner on MLB Network.
“It’s thanks to you, Pedro and my family. When I was a kid, I followed you a lot. Now here I am, the third Dominican with Cy-Young,” said Alcantara, struggling to hold back his tears. .It will never be forgotten by me.I hope it will be special for my country.
Alcantara has been very busy in 2022, but it still delivered the goods. He started 32 games, for a total of 228 2/3 innings, a major league high since 2015.
With his excellent stamina, the 6’5″ giant went 14-9, his best ever in six major league seasons, and averaged 2.28 earned runs per game.
Max Fried of the Atlanta Braves and Julio Urias of the Los Angeles Dodgers were the other finalists for the National League title.