Here’s why the AL’s revolving door of Cy Young winners is a good thing for baseball – CBSSports.com

Despite not receiving the most first-place votes,
Boston Red Sox
right-hander
Rick Porcello
was named winner of the 2016 AL Cy Young Award on Wednesday night. He received eight first-place votes, while
Detroit Tigers
righty
Justin Verlander
received 14. Porcello’s huge edge in second-place votes (18-2) was the key to his win.

The five-point gap between Porcello and Verlander was the second-smallest in Cy Young history. Verlander lost to
David Price
by only four points in 2012. The tight race extends beyond Porcello and Verlander this year, too. The top four finishers were separated by a mere 65 points:

1. Rick Porcello – 137 points
2. Justin Verlander – 132
3. 
   Corey Kluber
   – 98
4. 
   Zach Britton
   – 72

Eleven different pitchers received an AL Cy Young vote this year, which is actually down from 14 last year. You have to go back to 2009 for the last time fewer than nine pitchers received an AL Cy Young vote. There are a few reasons for that. Lots of great pitchers is the biggest one, I’d say.

The last AL pitcher to win back-to-back Cy Youngs was the great Pedro Martinez back in 1999 and 2000. Since then, 15 different pitchers have won the last 16 AL Cy Young awards. The only two-time winner?
Johan Santana
, who won the 2004 and 2006 awards during his
Minnesota Twins
heyday.

The NL has had a few Cy Young “dynasties” during that time. Randy Johnson won four straight Cy Youngs from 1999-2002.
Tim Lincecum
won two straight from 2009-10.
Clayton Kershaw
won three in four years from 2011-14, and, frankly, he could have very easily won five in a row from 2011-15. He was that good.

There are two ways to look at this. One, it’s good for baseball that the AL Cy Young has been such a revolving door the last 16 years, because a wide-open race every year keeps fans more interested. And two, the AL Cy Young being so open is bad for baseball because the league lacks a standout great.

That second point, that a wide open Cy Young race is bad for baseball, is, of course, nonsense. There’s been so much turnover in the AL Cy Young voting the last 16 years because the league is home to many great pitchers.
Chris Sale
still hasn’t won the award yet, amazingly.
Aaron Sanchez
just arrived, too.

Watching an all-time great like Pedro or Johnson or Kershaw in their prime is one of the best things about baseball. Who doesn’t love to watch greatness? At same time, we’re also privy to watching many great pitchers in one league, so much so that any could win the Cy Young in a given year. That’s exciting, too.

There have been a handful of truly great AL pitchers over the last few seasons — Sale, Verlander, Price and
Felix Hernandez
come to mind — but none has been able to go out and win multiple Cy Youngs because the other guys exist. They keep stealing votes from each other. Competition for the AL Cy Young is fierce.

Who’s the early favorite for the NL Cy Young? I’d be kinda silly to pick against Kershaw at the moment. What about the AL? Well, beats me. Did anyone have Porcello winning this year?
Dallas Keuchel
last year? Kluber the year before that? No one did. Surprises are fun, and we’ve seen a few of them lately.

At some point we’re going to see an AL pitcher go on a run and win two or three Cy Youngs in a row. My money is on Sale, assuming he doesn’t get traded to the NL. Sanchez wouldn’t be a bad choice either. Ditto AL Rookie of the Year
Michael Fulmer
.

For now, we’re left with a wide-open Cy Young race each year, and a bunch of excellent pitchers competing for one award. I wouldn’t want it any other way.