Baseball Digest announced on Friday that the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander was the winner of the publication's Major League Baseball Pitcher of the Year. Skenes is the first Pirates pitcher to win the award, which is not a surprise, given that the franchise has not won a division title since the award's inception in 1994.
However, Skenes is clearly deserving of the award, as his 1.97 ERA easily led the major leagues and showed that his lackluster 10-10 record in 32 starts was a product of being on a team that finished last in the National League Central for a second straight year.
Skenes was the NL Rookie of the Year last season, and his 1.9647 earned run average over the first 55 starts of his major-league career is the third-lowest since ERA became an official statistic in 1913. Al Mamaux had a 1.93 mark from 1914-16, and Dutch Ruether's 1.96 from 1917-20.
Skenes' 216 strikeouts were second in the majors this season behind the 224 of the San Francisco Giants' Logan Webb.
That leads to the question of whether Skenes will become just the third Pirates pitcher to win a Cy Young Award. He would join Vernon Law (1960) and Doug Drabek (1990).
The oddsmakers have Skenes as their heavy favorite. Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Christoper Sanchez and Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Freddy Peralta are considered the other top contenders.
Sanchez and Peralta had fine seasons and more wins than Skenes. Yet Skenes had better peripheral statistics.
Sanchez posted a 13-5 record and a 2.50 ERA in 32 starts, with 212 strikeouts in 202 innings, while helping the Phillies win the NL East. However, his WHIP was 1.064, compared to Skenes' 0.948, and Sanchez's strikeout-to-walk ratio was 4.52, compared to Skenes' 5.28.
Peralta was the ace of the staff of the NL Central champions, going 17-6 with a 2.70 ERA in 33 starts while striking out 204 in 176 2/3 innings. He had a 1.075 WHP and a 3.09 K/BB ratio.
Looking at the numbers, it's hard to imagine Sanchez and Peralta beating out Skenes for the Cy Young.