"The Year of the Pitcher" was most notable in the often offensively challenged National League, leading to some extremely impressive numbers for several NL hurlers. When the league hands out its Cy Young Award on Tuesday, only one of those hurlers will be truly worthy of standing atop the pedestal.
Roy Halladay will become the fifth pitcher in baseball history to win the Cy Young in both leagues when the votes are counted. Among the only questions to be answered when the final results are revealed is whether anyone else gets any first-place votes.
The Philadelphia Phillies' ace, acquired in a blockbuster deal last offseason, is not without worthy competitors, but a glance at the numbers suggests nobody else deserves the top spot. Here is a quick breakdown of the best pitchers in the NL:
1. Roy Halladay
The perfect game on May 29 was the biggest of several highlights for the 33-year-old right-hander. He led the NL in wins (21), complete games (9), shutouts (4), innings pitched (250 2/3), walks per nine innings (1.1) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (7.30). That doesn't leave many other areas in which to dominate but Halladay was also among the leaders in ERA (2.44, third), WHIP (1.041, second) and strikeouts (219, second).It was the best all-around season for the six-time All-Star.
2. Adam Wainright
The NL's other 20-game winner actually had a better ERA than Halladay by a scant 0.02 but fell just shy of Doc in several other categories. One of the more underrated arms in all of baseball, he is getting a bit better each and every year. A trophy awaits, but not this year.
3. Ubaldo Jimenez
The favorite until he met the Red Sox on June 23 and gave up six runs on 10 hits in 5 2/3 innings. That was part of a stretch run that saw him go 6-7 with a 4.34 ERA and turn a Bob Gibson-like campaign into one that deserves plenty of accolades, but no Cy Young.
4. Tim Lincecum
The two-time defending champ had a slight dip in most categories, but since he won the clinching game of the World Series it's doubtful he cares about finishing fourth this time around.
