(Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images)
New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole has been one of the league’s top pitchers for years.
He has had several elite seasons that probably deserved more recognition in the form of awards.
However, he can finally say he is a Cy Young winner.
On Wednesday, he was announced as the winner of the 2023 edition of the award in the American League.
Better yet, he dit it unanimously, leaving absolutely no doubts.
Mark Feinsand, an MLB insider and voter for the award, published the voting breakdown.
Gerrit Cole is the unanimous winner of the 2023 AL Cy Young Award. Here is the full vote breakdown: pic.twitter.com/kLYHJtki7D
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) November 16, 2023
Minnesota Twins ace Sonny Gray and Toronto Blue Jays star Kevin Gausman were seen as Cole’s primary competition for the hardware.
They ended up receiving no first-place votes, though, as Cole swept the competition.
In 209 innings and 33 starts, Cole posted a cool 2.63 ERA and 222 strikeouts.
He also won 15 games and lost just four, with a 0.98 WHIP.
Simply put, it was one of his best performances.
Some might argue that this should be Cole’s third Cy Young award by now, as he was very much in the race in 2019 and 2021.
While they might be right, 2023 will go down in history as the year in which he was finally recognized for his greatness.
He was the lone bright spot for an underwhelming Yankees team this past season.
Now, he becomes the sixth Yankee pitcher to win the Cy Young award.
Roger Clemens in 2001, Ron Guidry in 1978, Sparky Lyle in 1977, Whitey Ford in 1961, and Bob Turley in 1958 were the others.
Only Guidry and Cole took home the hardware unanimously.
History, indeed.
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