Former Nats ace Scherzer places 3rd for Cy
Jessica Camerato
@jessicacameratoWASHINGTON -- Former Nationals ace Max Scherzer finished third in voting for the 2021 National League Cy Young Award on Wednesday.
Corbin Burnes of the Brewers was named the winner by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America with 12 first-place votes (151 total points), ahead of Zack Wheeler of the Phillies (12 first-place votes, 141 total points) and Scherzer (six first-place votes, 113 total points). Scherzer also received five second-place votes, 13 third-place votes and six fourth-place votes.
Scherzer, 37, was in the running to become the fifth pitcher to win at least four Cy Young Awards after previously earning the honor in 2013 with the Tigers and consecutively in ‘16 and ‘17 with the Nationals. This season marked the eighth time in Scherzer’s career to finish in at least the top five for the award, according to Elias Sports Bureau. He is tied with Jim Palmer, Tom Seaver and Justin Verlander for the fourth-most top-five finishes of all time.
Scherzer was an anchor of the Nats’ rotation from 2015 until late July, when he was moved to the Dodgers in a blockbuster deal at the Trade Deadline. Rick Sutcliffe, who was dealt by the Indians to the Cubs in June 1984, remains the only pitcher to win the award the same year in which he changed teams in midseason.
In his 14th season, Scherzer went 15-4 with a career-best 2.46 ERA over 30 starts, going 8-4 with a 2.76 ERA across 19 starts for Washington. He paced all Major League starting pitchers with a career-low 0.86 WHIP and 6.0 hits per nine innings. Scherzer also ranked first in the NL in walks per nine innings (1.8) and second in ERA, strikeouts per nine innings (11.8), strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.56) and total strikeouts (236).
Scherzer’s 2021 season highlights with the Nationals included throwing a complete game (and, at 106 pitches, a near-Maddux) before dashing to the hospital for the birth of his son, passing Cy Young as he moved up the leaderboard in total strikeouts and being named the NL starter in his eighth All-Star Game. Following his trade to the Dodgers, he became the 19th pitcher to reach 3,000 career K's.
During the award presentation on MLB Network, Scherzer displayed his trio of Cy Young Awards and the Nationals’ 2019 World Series championship trophy.