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Cleveland Indians ace Shane Bieber was the unanimous winner of the AL Cy Young award on Wednesday night, and Trevor Bauer became the first player to earn the NL honor for the Cincinnati Reds.
Using a versatile repertoire that includes a looping curve and a wipeout slider, Bieber went 8-1 with a 1.63 ERA and 122 strikeouts in 77 1/3 innings during the season shortened by pandemic, leading the ERA and strikeouts majors and tying Yu Darvish for most wins.
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Bieber became the second player in franchise history to win the AL Triple Crown pitch, joining Hall of Famer Bob Feller in 1940. He was also the first pitcher to lead majors in all three categories since Johan Santana for Minnesota in 2006.
Bauer was 5-4 with a 1.73 NL average in 11 starts, helping the Reds reach the playoffs for the first time since 2013. The 29-year-old right-hander struck out 100 in 73 innings and had led the majors with two shutouts, a pair of performances in seven innings in doubles matches.
Brash Bauer is Cy Young’s first winner for Cincinnati, the majors’ oldest franchise. He became a free agent after the season and turned down the Reds’ qualifying offer, but left the door open for a comeback.
Chicago Cubs right-hander Yu Darvish was second in the Baseball Writers’ Association of America poll. New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom finished third, ending his candidacy for a third consecutive NL Cy Young Award.
Bieber was the first AL’s first unanimous winner since Justin Verlander for the Detroit Tigers in 2011. It was the tenth time an AL pitcher has been a unanimous choice for the prize.
Minnesota Twins right-hander Kenta Maeda was second in the AL vote, followed by Toronto Blue Jays left-hander Hyun Jin Ryu.
The BBWAA will announce the MVPs on Thursday evening.
Bieber, 25, was selected by Cleveland in the fourth round of the 2016 entry draft. He made his major league debut in 2018 and went 11-5 with a 4.55 ERA. But he really started showing his potential last year, winning the MVP award at the All-Star Game and finishing with 15 wins and a 3.28 ERA.
“I was a little late in high school so I felt like I had to learn to present and let my things come to me,” Bieber said last week when he was announced as a Cy Young finalist. . “Continuing to work hard, continue to develop in the second half of high school and go to college, was able to refine my game.
“But in terms of development, I wouldn’t trade my process for anything. It felt like my first few years of learning to throw, change gears and locate the ball paid off in the long run.
Bieber gave Cleveland its fifth Cy Young Award since CC Sabathia won it in 2007. Cliff Lee won in 2008 and Corey Kluber won the honor in 2014 and 2017. Gaylord Perry in 1972 is the only other winner of Cy Young for the tribe.
It’s the first Cy Young for Bauer, who finished sixth in the AL voting in 2018 after going 12-6 with a 2.21 ERA for the Indians. He was traded to Cincinnati as part of a three-team deal at last year’s deadline that transferred Yasiel Puig to Cleveland.
Bauer struggled after being acquired by the Reds, going 2-5 with a 6.39 ERA in 10 starts. But he returned to form when that season finally began in July.
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He’s allowed just two runs and eight hits in 26 1/3 innings over his first four starts. He also ended the season on a high, registering a 1.29 ERA and 46 strikeouts in 35 innings over five starts in September.
Bauer pitched the playoff opener in Atlanta and struck out 12 in 7 2/3 innings. But the Reds lost 1-0 in 13 innings and failed to score in the Braves’ sweep.
Bauer, who has his own YouTube account and nearly 400,000 Twitter followers, was selected by Arizona with the third pick in the 2011 Draft. He is 75-64 with a 3.90 ERA in 205 career games. , including 195 departures.
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