News
Two Cards among three Cy contenders
Carpenter, Wainwright favorites alongside Lincecum
By Matthew Leach / MLB.com
11/18/09 7:30 PM EST
ST. LOUIS -- They're each other's biggest fan. So come Thursday, Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter may both be very happy.The Cardinals' co-ace right-handers are two of the three leading candidates for the National League Cy Young Award, along with Giants righty Tim Lincecum. If Carpenter wins, Wainwright will be thrilled for his mentor. If Wainwright wins, Carpenter will be delighted for his protégé. If either one wins, it will be a day of celebration for the Cardinals organization.
"If it's not one of our guys, I'll be really disappointed," manager Tony La Russa said. "I think either one or both, I don't know what else they could have done to prove they're the best in the league. I'm pulling hard for them."
Wainwright, 28, is likely the favorite, if late-season comments by some voters are any guide. He went 19-8 with a 2.63 ERA, 212 strikeouts, 66 walks and 17 home runs allowed in a league-leading 233 innings. Wainwright paced the senior circuit in victories and finished fourth in punchouts and also recently won his first Gold Glove. He would be the third Cardinals hurler to win the award, joining Bob Gibson and Carpenter, who won in 2005.
"It would be cool," Wainwright said late in the season when asked about the Cy Young. "It would be awesome to win that. But winning for the team comes first. If I could get another ring, of course I would rather do that. But you win an award like that, it's all the hard work that you've done going into the season and during the season, the adjustments you made during the season, it's paying off. Whether I win it or not, I still feel pretty good about my season."
Carpenter, 34, was better than his friend and teammate on a per-inning basis, but missed several weeks early in the year due to a strained oblique muscle. He still enjoyed a spectacular season, going 17-4 with a 2.24 ERA, 144 strikeouts, 38 walks and seven homers allowed in 192 2/3 innings. Carpenter's ERA led the NL, as did his .810 winning percentage. He would become the 15th pitcher in history to win the Cy Young more than once.
And then there's Lincecum, who is certainly a strong candidate himself -- and is the reigning winner of the award. The Giants star, 25, posted a 15-7 record with a 2.48 ERA, a league-leading 261 strikeouts, 68 walks and 10 homers in 225 1/3 innings.
Fans, media and the players themselves all have favorites, but it would be difficult to complain about any of the three candidates winning. If Wainwright had been able to pick up a 20th win, that vaunted milestone likely would have sewn it up for him. Had Carpenter stayed healthy, he might have been a runaway winner. And if Lincecum had gotten more run support for a record more commensurate with his performance, he might easily be the guy.
Instead it's a difficult call. But wins still hold a great deal of sway with voters, and Wainwright also has the narrative. He shouldered the load for the Cards' staff all year. He also pitched in what was likely the team's game of the year, the division-clinching win in Colorado on Sept. 26. Wainwright pitched eight superb innings in that game, striking out 11. And he turned in a fine outing in the season's final game, but the St. Louis bullpen cost him what would have been win No. 20.
"I don't know what else he could have done," La Russa said, "except hit a grand slam in that last game so he could have won 20."
Matthew Leach is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
