Ray, Burnes win Cy Young awards
Toronto left-hander Robbie Ray bounced back from a dismal season to win the AL Cy Young Award and Milwaukee righty Corbin Burnes returned from a bout of COVID-19 to win the NL’s top pitching prize Wednesday.
In the Year of the Pitcher, Burnes, a former St. Mary’s Gael, led the majors with a 2.43 ERA and Ray topped the AL at 2.84. Both put up impressive strikeout totals, too, helping build their cases with those studying new-era stats and others looking at more traditional numbers.
Burnes edged Philadelphia’s Zack Wheeler for the award, with both receiving 12 first-place votes from members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. The Dodgers’ Max Scherzer finished third.
Burnes became the first Brewers pitcher to earn the NL honor — Pete Vuckovich in 1982 and Rollie Fingers in 1981 won the award when Milwaukee was still in the American League.
Burnes was the Brewers’ fourth-round pick in the 2016 draft after going 9-2 with a 2.48 ERA as a junior with the Gaels.
Ray became the first Toronto pitcher to win since the late Roy Halladay in 2003.
Ray got 29 first-place votes. Yankees ace Gerrit Cole finished second and Chicago White Sox righty Lance Lynn was third.
Burnes was 11-5 and fanned 234 in 167 innings while becoming an All-Star for the NL Central champion Brewers. His innings count was lower than his competitors, owing to him missing two weeks in early May after testing positive for COVID-19.
In his first season as a full-time starter, Burnes struck out a record 58 before issuing his first walk. He tied the major league mark by fanning 10 in a row against the Cubs in August.
Burnes was 4-1 with a 2.11 ERA during the virusshortened season and was hampered by an oblique strain. He came back to lead the majors with 12.6 strikeouts per nine innings this year.
Voting for the awards was completed before the playoffs began.
Ray topped the majors with 248 strikeouts and led the AL with 193 1/3 innings. He went 13-7 in 32 starts and helped keep Toronto in playoff contention until the final weekend. MVPS COMING TODAY >> The MVPs will be announced today, ending the BBWAA awards season.
Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani is considered the AL favorite, with Toronto slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Blue Jays infielder Marcus Semien as the other finalists.
Phillies star Bryce Harper, Washington outfielder Juan Soto and San Diego dynamo Fernando Tatis Jr. are the NL finalists.
No matter who wins, it will mark the first time since 1987 (the Cubs’ Andre Dawson and Toronto’s George Bell) that neither MVP reached the playoffs in the year they were elected.
VERLANDER AGREES TO DEAL WITH ASTROS >> Justin
Verlander reached a $25 million deal to remain with the Houston Astros as he comes back from Tommy John surgery.
Verlander, a 38-year-old right-hander, has a conditional $25 million option for 2023 as part of the agreement.
He made one start in 2020, pitching six innings on July 24 in a win over Seattle on opening day before being placed on the injured list with strained right forearm. He attempted a comeback, but announced on Sept. 19, 2020, that he needed Tommy John surgery and underwent the procedure on Oct. 1.
Verlander, a two-time Cy Young Award winner and the 2011 AL MVP, became a free agent after completing a $94 million, threeyear contract with the Astros. He said earlier this year that his rehabilitation was going well and added that he hated that he only played one game in the time that deal covered.
“That gnaws at me,” he said. “But ... this was an unfortunate injury that nobody could have seen coming. But I still do like to earn my keep.”
Players who turned down offers included Freeman (Atlanta), shortstop Carlos Correa and Verlander
(Houston), righthander Raisel Iglesias (Los Angeles Angels), Robbie Ray and second baseman/ shortstop Marcus Semien (Toronto), outfielder Nick Castellanos (Cincinnati), shortstop Trevor Story (Colorado), shortstop Corey Seager and infielder/ outfielder Chris Taylor (Los Angeles Dodgers) and outfielder Michael Conforto (New York Mets). LABOR UPDATE >> New York Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner said he voted for Major League Baseball’s proposal to lower the luxury tax threshold, a plan opposed by the players’ union with the sport on the brink of its first work stoppage on 26 years.
The luxury tax, formally known as the competitive balance tax, had a threshold of $210 million this year. Owners proposed lowering it to $180 million and adding a $100 million payroll floor. The union long has opposed a floor, fearing it would lead to a hard cap.
Speaking Wednesday at Major League Baseball’s regular owners’ meetings in Chicago, Steinbrenner said the CBT proposal was approved by the labor policy committee.
“There’s seven of us on labor policy,” Steinbrenner said. “Boston, me, several mid-markets, a couple small markets. We’re a very diverse group, and when we came up with the proposal, including CBT and luxury tax that we brought to the union, it was a unanimous, on our committee, a unanimous deal.”
MLB’s five-year labor contract expires at 8:59 p.m. PST on Dec. 1, and Steinbrenner said the owners are having discussions with the players’ union “on a continuous basis.”
Despite negotiations, there’s been no sign of any movement toward a deal. If the agreement expires without a new deal in place, MLB could lock out its players — putting the start of spring training in jeopardy.