WSOU

Trevor Bauer and his CY Young-worthy season

Date: November 9, 2020

By: Michael Daly

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Duane Burleson/Getty Images

The National League CY Young Finalists include Chicago Cubs pitcher Yu Darvish, Cincinnati Reds pitcher Trevor Bauer, and New York Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom. The winner of the award should be Bauer based on his statistical dominance and consistency throughout the duration of the truncated season.

 

Bauer ended the season as the NL leader in ERA and WHIP, which should win him the award based on how challenging this season was. It is unfair to say that these statistics for any pitcher have an asterisk because this season was extremely difficult with the pandemic.

He finished with a 1.73 ERA, 0.795 WHIP, and 100 strikeouts. His strikeout total ranked second in the National League, behind only Jacob deGrom (104 strikeouts). His season high in strikeouts came in his first start of the season with 13 K’s against the Detroit Tigers. He went on to post three additional games with 12 strikeouts.

 

Bauer’s pitching was very stingy this season and most of the runs he gave up were from home runs. Besides a few long balls that he gave up to opposing hitters, he was extremely disciplined and effective on the mound.

The competition Bauer faces for the CY Young is stiff, especially since deGrom is vying for a third consecutive CY Young Award. For the New York Mets, deGrom pitched a total of 68.0 innings, and he had an ERA of 2.38. On the other hand, Bauer pitched 73.0 innings and his 1.74 ERA was the best in the league by a wide margin. Darvish was the next closest pitcher in the NL with a 2.01 ERA.

 

Bauer was very impactful in all of his starts and he was the most effective pitcher in the Senior Circuit. He led the National League in complete game shutouts with two shutouts. He was tied with three other pitchers in the MLB for the most complete games-two.

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Dale Zanine/USA TODAY Sports

If Bauer wins this award, it will be good for the game of baseball because he strives to expand the sport’s interest to a younger demographic. He has an appealing social media presence with an unfiltered personality. Fans love how he never holds back when it comes to expressing his feelings.

 

Although this will not have an impact on the voting, it needs to be noted that he pitched at a high level while running his own media company, Momentum. He vlogged the entire season and he kept his fans engaged on a weekly basis with his videos. Bauer is carving out his own lane in baseball and he is setting himself up for a successful future after his baseball career is over. The CY Young will be announced on Nov. 11 at 6 p.m., and if he wins the award, it could benefit him in free agency which began at the start of the month.

Michael Daly is the station manager of 89.5 FM WSOU, and can be reached at wsoustationmanager@gmail.com.

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