The National League CY Young Award figures to go to either one of two pitchers: Tim Lincecum, the reigning NL CY Young award winner or Chris Carpenter. Both have had outstanding seasons but Lincecum has been listed as the favorite at -200. Carpenter on the other hand is a better value pick at +200 and shouldn’t be discredited as he has been nearly flawless in 2009. The only guy who could be any sort of threat to win is Carpenter’s teammate Adam Wainwright but that seems unlikely.
Tim Lincecum -200:
Lincecum has proven over the last two seasons that he is one of if not the best pitcher in all of baseball. The hard throwing right hander is 13-4 with a 2.33 ERA this season thus far. He has gone just 3-2 since the All-Star break but that seems to be the only knock on Lincecum and shouldn’t take too much away from what has been another outstanding season. Along with the great record and ERA is the fact that Lincecum leads the league in strikeouts by a mile with 222 and also complete games with four. If the voters decide on Lincecum for a second straight year, it won’t be a surprise as this guy continues to dominate National League hitters and has his team in the hunt for the wild card as they are just two games behind the Colorado Rockies.
Chris Carpenter +200:
Despite being listed quite a bit behind Lincecum, Carpenter actually has the better numbers as far as winning percentage and ERA. Carpenter is 14-3 with a 2.20 earned run average which is the best in the Major Leagues in both categories. He has been absolutely filthy this year for the Cardinals and has absolutely dominated hitters since the All-Star break. In fact he hasn’t lost a decision in the second half of the season going 7-0 with a 1.85 ERA. The better second half numbers could push voters toward Carpenter and I think he deserves this award just as much as Lincecum. It won’t be a surprise if Carpenter takes home the CY Young as he definitely deserves it. The numbers don’t lie and at +200, Carpenter might be worth a shot.
Other Pitchers to Watch:
Adam Waingright seems to be the only other guy who should draw any attention away from the pitchers listed above. Wainwright leads the league in wins with 16 and is third in ERA. Overall, Wainwright is 16-7 with a 2.47 ERA. The seven losses will likely deter voters away from picking Wainwright so I expect the award to go to either Lincecum or Carpenter but all three have had great seasons.
Betting Odds to win the 2009 National League Cy Young Award are from Sportsbook.com.
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