The Cleveland Guardians featured two of the American League’s best pitchers this season. Parker Messick did his work in the starting rotation, and Cade Smith was a dominant closer.
Both received votes for the American League Cy Young Award, which was announced on Wednesday night.
The award was won by New York Yankees ace Cam Schlittler, who had all 30 first-place votes.
Second place was held by Dylan Cease of the Toronto Blue Jays.
Messick ended up placing third for the Cy Young in his first full MLB season, an impressive accomplishment.
And Smith came in eighth. He got two fifth-place votes.
These were the full voting results:
| Player | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cam Schlittler (Yankees) | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 210 |
| Dylan Cease (Blue Jays) | 0 | 22 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 110 |
| Parker Messick (Guardians) | 0 | 7 | 12 | 9 | 2 | 84 |
| Drew Rasmussen (Rays) | 0 | 1 | 12 | 15 | 2 | 72 |
| Sonny Gray (Red Sox) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 15 | 21 |
| Reid Detmers (Angels) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 9 |
| Cade Smith (Guardians) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Bryan Baker (Rays) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Michael Wacha (Royals) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Parker Messick Stats
Messick finished as the runner-up for the AL Rookie of the Year behind Tigers shortstop Kevin McGonigle
The 26-year-old left-handed pitcher had debuted at the end of last season but had his first full big league season this year.
He put up a 12-9 record with a 2.56 ERA in 32 starts. Messick struck out 193 batters in 186.1 innings.
The amazing thing about Messick: His fastball got better and faster as the year went on. He was known for his nasty changeup, and when his fastball played up, the change got even more effective.
Cade Smith Stats
Smith might’ve been the best closer in the American League this season.
He pitched in 69 games and had a 1.95 ERA with a 6-1 record.
Smith saved 41 games, which was the most in the American League. He also finished 60 games, also the most in the AL.
The big righty struck out 107 batters in 74.0 innings compared to just 48 hits and 23 walks. Smith allowed just five home runs in those 74 innings.
Smith and Messick were both big parts of getting the Guardians to Game 6 of the ALCS, but their season ended there at the hands of the Tampa Bay Rays.
Both were recognized for their great years, though, in their AL Cy Young voting placement.
Guardians’ Parker Messick, Cade Smith Get AL Cy Young Voting Results