Projected Cy Young Winners For The 2021 MLB Season
With home runs on the rise, and the starting pitcher’s usage seeming to slowly decrease (openers and middle relief), a good starting pitcher is certainly a prize to admire these days. There is a sprawling group of starters who are poised to shine and shut down their respected leagues. Don’t forget to take into account that they may be able to benefit from the deadened ball. Let’s see who my projected Cy Young Winners are for 2021.
American League: Gerrit Cole
The New York Yankees ace will continue to mow down the AL as he’s done respectively for the last three years. What stopped him from winning it last year were streaking pitchers having practically improbable seasons like Hyun Jin Ryu and Kenta Maeda. Give them a full season, and their stats will be back to their normalness. Cole, however, knows how to maintain his composure through the entirety of a season. His average the last three years combined is 19 wins, a 2.71 ERA, and 308 strikeouts. None of the players who finished above him in last year’s Cy Young voting would even come close in the duration of a full season. Gerrit Cole also plays for a chemistry-filled Yankees team that’s grown accustomed to each other the last three or so years. He’s confident and will take home the Cy Young Award this year once and for all.
Projected Stats: 21 wins, 2.52 ERA, 305 strikeouts
Runner-ups: Shane Bieber, Lucas Giolito
National League: Walker Buehler
Los Angeles Dodger Walker Buehler will continue to make his mark on the National League. The flamethrower still has a ton to prove and hasn’t even reached his full potential yet. He has the workhorse attitude and the attributes to push him over the top as an elite pitcher. In his first full season in 2019, he won 14 games, had a 3.26 ERA, and 215 strikeouts. The stats don’t tell the full story. If you watch this man pitch he brings a “shut-em-down” mentality in which very few pitchers in the league actually possess. The Dodgers are very lucky to have this young man suit up every five days. Expect him not only to have success during the 2021 regular season but also be just as if not more impactful in high-leverage postseason play.
Projected Stats: 19 wins, 2.72 ERA, 283 strikeouts
Runner-ups: Jacob deGrom, Max Fried
