At the top of the AL East, there are serious candidates to win the Cy Young Award this season. Unfortunately, none are members of the Baltimore Orioles.
With the 2020 season being delayed, there is plenty of time to evaluate who has the best chance to win the Cy Young in the tough AL East. Sadly, all of the possibilities will face the Baltimore Orioles, rather than pitch for them.
There are some players in the division who have been close to taking home the award. Others already have the one award sitting in their trophy case and are looking to add another to the collection. Either way, coming into the 2020 season, the AL East is packed with potential candidates.
Star teammates, Blake Snell and Charlie Morton look to keep shutting down division opponents. While Hyun-Jin Ryu and Gerrit Cole came over from their former playoff teams to try and make a run with their new squads. All four of these pitchers either won the award or were in the top three in voting during the course of the past two seasons.
Let’s take a look at who I think are the best candidates to win the AL 2020 Cy Young Award.
5. Nathan Eovaldi, Boston Red Sox
Since he helped the Red Sox win the 2018 world series, we haven’t seen much of Eovaldi. After recovering from injury last season, I think Nate Eovaldi will have a bounce-back year if he can keep his velocity up. With injuries to his throwing elbow and bicep soreness, Red Sox fans are ready to see a healthy version of their former ace. With his power arm and a star-studded fielding behind him, I think he has a shot for a Cy Young push.
4. Blake Snell, Tampa Bay Rays (2018 AL Winner, Rays)
Blake Snell had a surprising, injury-plagued decline last season after a Cy Young-winning 2018 season. He gave up over two more runs between seasons. With a power fastball and cartoon-like 12-6 curve ball, I think Snell can blow past lineups every fifth day. Snell is currently dealing with elbow soreness and hopes to be ready for when the season resumes.
His original return date was set for March 26th vs. Pittsburgh. Snell has the pitching repertoire to have batters off balance the whole season. If he can stay healthy as he did in 2018, he will surely guide the Rays to a deep playoff push with the help of another starter trailing behind him.