AL Cy Young Award Rankings: Is Jered Weaver the Man to Beat?

Jun 7, 2018

This time last week, Los Angeles Angels ace Jered Weaver was in the American League Cy Young discussion, but not quite at the top of it.

He must have sensed our doubts. Weaver's last two starts consist of a no-hitter and a gem on the road against the Minnesota Twins. He's now seven starts into his 2012 campaign, and he has video-game numbers that make baseball geeks like you and I drool uncontrollably.

But does this mean he's the new No. 1 in the race for the AL Cy Young award?

Well, it's that time of the week when we get to find out. Here's my weekly look at the top five contenders for the AL Cy Young in the 2012 season.

5. Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers

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Last Week: UR

Justin Verlander had a ridiculously good season in 2011, but you had to figure he wasn't going to be able to duplicate it.

So far, he hasn't. But you know what? Verlander's been pretty darn good.

I left Verlander out of my top five last week, when he was 2-1 with a 2.41 ERA and was coming off a semi-rough outing against the New York Yankees. It was the right call to make at the time.

Verlander responded (an expression, I assure you) by pitching eight innings against the Kansas City Royals, giving up just six hits and two earned runs while striking out seven. He didn't get a win, but it was yet another brilliant start by the reigning AL MVP and Cy Young winner.

Through six starts, Verlander is sitting on a very good 2.38 ERA, and he ranks third in the AL in WHIP (0.86), fifth in strikeouts (42) and he's tied for fifth in the league with 45.1 innings pitched.

Each guy ahead of Verlander in the last category has made one more start than he has. It's a good bet Verlander will pass all of them after he's finished with his start in Seattle on Tuesday night.

For now, he's at No. 5, and a big-time threat to keep climbing the rankings. It's worth noting that it was right around this time last year that he took off.

4. David Price, Tampa Bay Rays

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Last Week: UR

David Price finished second in the AL Cy Young voting in 2010, but he got a bit of a reality check last year. It became clear as the season went along that he was going to have to evolve as a pitcher.

Challenge accepted.

Through six starts, Price has a record of 5-1 and an ERA of 2.35. He's coming off a very impressive outing against the Oakland Athletics in which he struck out 12 in eight innings of work.

Price's numbers are very good, and they'd be a lot better if it wasn't for his start against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on April 13th. In that start, he lasted just three innings, giving up three earned runs on 83 pitches.

Take that start out of the equation, and Price is 5-0 with a 1.79 ERA. That, my friends, is dominance.

This should come as no surprise; Price has some of the best stuff in baseball, and he's using it a lot better this season than he did in 2011.

3. Jake Peavy, Chicago White Sox

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Last Week: No. 1

When we last checked in with Jake Peavy, he had numbers that no other pitcher in the American League could match. He was also coming off consecutive complete games in which he looked like the Peavy who won the NL Cy Young in 2007.

Peavy came back down to earth against the Detroit Tigers last week...but only to a degree. He lasted 7.2 innings, giving up seven hits and three earned runs. That's not a bad start by any stretch of the imagination.

Entering Tuesday's action, Peavy ranked fourth in the AL in ERA (1.99), sixth in strikeouts (39) and first in WHIP (0.75). He has the second-highest WAR among American League starters according to FanGraphs, and the highest WAR of any starter in the majors according to Baseball-Reference.com.

He's been outstanding this season, make no mistake about that. If the Chicago White Sox have any brains, they'll trade him while the getting's good.

For the time being, they can rest easy knowing that Peavy is going to give them a great performance every time he takes the mound. He's in a heck of a groove.

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2. Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners

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Last Week: No. 2

Felix Hernandez is an absolute machine. He looked great when we checked in with him last week, and he looks even better now.

This has everything to do with his most recent start against the Minnesota Twins. King Felix went eight innings, giving up one hit while striking out nine. He didn't allow any runs, and he ultimately collected his third win of the young season.

Hernandez currently leads the league in two major categories. He leads in innings pitched with 52.1, and in strikeouts with 51. His 1.89 ERA ranks third.

He has failed to last at least seven innings just once this season, and that was back on April 7th against the Oakland A's. He went 6.1 innings in that game, giving up six earned runs in the process.

For kicks, let's pretend that game never happened. If so, Hernandez would have an ERA of 0.98.

No further comment needed.

1. Jered Weaver, Los Angeles Angels

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Last Week: No. 3

Sorry for the tease way back when, but Jered Weaver is indeed the man to beat in the AL Cy Young race as of now.

Weaver's numbers speak for themselves. He's a perfect 5-0 on the season, and he ranks first in the AL in ERA (1.60), second in innings pitched (50.2), second in strikeouts (47) and second in WHIP (0.79).

Weaver has made seven starts this season. Five of them have seen him go at least six innings and allow one earned run or fewer.

Granted, Weaver has had the luxury of facing some pretty weak offenses, as he's faced the Twins three times and has also started games against the Oakland A's and Kansas City Royals. His numbers wouldn't look so great if he had to face, say, the Texas Rangers, New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox.

But for the time being, his numbers are absolutely filthy, and no other pitcher in the Cy Young race has a no-hitter on his resume.

Until further notice, Weaver's leading the race. We'll see if that's still the case when we check back next week.