Cleveland Indians Pitcher C.C. Sabathia Wins Cy Young Award

Did hell freeze over today? I am so shocked, I'm almost speechless. Not only did Sabathia win, but another Indians pitcher, Fausto Carmona, came in 4th place. I thought it was illegal for anyone outside of Boston, New York, and California to win the award.

C.C. Sabathia won the AL Cy Young Award on Tuesday, beating out several worthy contenders by a comfortable margin and becoming the first Cleveland pitcher in 35 years to earn the honor. The Indians ace received 19 of 28 first-place votes and finished with 119 points in balloting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Boston's Josh Beckett was second with eight first-place votes and 86 points, while John Lackey of the Los Angeles Angels got the other first-place vote and came in third. Sabathia went 19-7 with a 3.21 ERA and 209 strikeouts, pitching a major league-high 241 innings. Beckett (20-7) became the only big league pitcher to win 20 games since 2005, compiling a 3.27 ERA in 200 2-3 innings. Lackey led the AL in ERA at 3.01, going 19-9 and tossing 224 innings.

 

*NOTE-I will add that neither Sabathia or Carmona's playoff performances warranted Cy Young consideration. It's a good thing the voting was held during the regular season.*