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It's award week on SB Nation. Yesterday, we voted for Hitter of the Year, and today we're selecting the Pitcher of the Year. Each of the SBN baseball sites are voting for their top candidate, and at a later date, an overall winner will be selected for each category. The Pinstripe Alley staff unanimously voted for Bryce Harper as the top hitter, but it was much more difficult to select the top pitcher. Unfortunately, there weren't any Yankee pitchers in the mix. Maybe next year.
The choices for MLB's Pitcher of Year were:
1. Zack Greinke, Los Angeles Dodgers (222.2 IP, 8.08 K/9, 1.62 BB/9, 1.66 ERA, 2.76 FIP, 0.84 WHIP)
2. Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers (232.2 IP, 11.64 K/9, 1.62 BB/9, 2.13 ERA, 1.99 FIP, 0.88 WHIP)
3. Jake Arrieta, Chicago Cubs (229 IP, 9.28 K/9, 1.89 BB/9, 1.77 ERA, 2.35 FIP, 0.86 WHIP)
4. David Price, Detroit Tigers/Toronto Blue Jays (220.1 IP, 9.19 K/9, 1.92 BB/9, 2.45 ERA, 2.78 FIP, 1.08 WHIP)
5. Dallas Keuchel, Houston Astros (232 IP, 8.38 K/9, 1.98 BB/9, 2.48 ERA, 2.91 FIP, 1.02 WHIP)
Each of these pitchers had great seasons, but Greinke, Kershaw and Arrieta were especially good in the staff's eyes. Ultimately, Greinke received the most votes (seven), while Kershaw came in second (four votes), and Arrieta came in third (three votes). Price and Keuchel did not receive any votes.
Greinke deserves the top honors for putting together one of the best seasons of his career. He's always had great stuff, but this year he posted a sub-2.00 ERA for the first time while keeping his walk and home run rates down. Opponents hit just .185 off of Greinke this season. He has consistently pitched well with the Dodgers during their postseason runs of the past few years, and this season was no different as he struck out 17 batters through 13.2 innings. Greinke won his first Cy Young award back in 2009 and he appears poised to win again this year, unless Arrieta or Kershaw come out on top.
Who do you think should win Pitcher of the Year? Vote in the poll below.