Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The Detroit Tigers‘ Max Scherzer as the starting pitcher in the All Star game for the American League is the no-brainer of this baseball season so far. But while the season isn’t even half over, one wonders if Scherzer, at 12-0, isn’t starting to put a wrap on the MLB Cy Young Award.
He’s the frontrunner for that, obviously, although plenty of time still remains in the regular season for anyone to emerge for any type of honors.
Scherzer showed Friday night that even when he’s not sharp, he’s still effective and he’s still a winner. He’s in command of the situation now, as he has been all season. He has started 16 games and has won 12 with four no-decisions. He continues to rack up the strikeouts with nine in seven innings Friday night in a 6-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. He only allowed a walk which has been another key to Scherzer’s success.
His ERA is headed for a personal career low. Scherzer seems to be a lock for 20 wins. His most wins in a season is 16 from last year. He should pass that mark by the end of July.
The key for Scherzer is that his confidence grows with every victory. He has learned how to keep runners off base and, in that respect, stays out of trouble most of the time.
It’s premature to talk about the Cy Young, obviously, but unless Scherzer loses his rhythm and starts racking the losses later in the season, he’ll definitely be in the Cy Young talk. But he continues to shine while other Tigers struggle.
