The Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas released odds on the projected winners of the 2020 Cy Young award for both MLB leagues, and a pair of pitchers in the Big Apple are favorites. Gerrit Cole, who recently signed a record-setting deal with the New York Yankees, is the favorite to win the AL Cy Young at 5/2 odds. Jacob deGrom won back-to-back Cy Young awards with the Mets over the past two seasons, and he’s the favorite to ship his third straight NL Cy Young at 5/2 odds.
The Yankees secured one of the best free agent arms on the market when they signed Cole. Cole, a lifelong Yankees fan, had no interest in re-upping with the Houston Astros. With the addition of Cole, the Yankees became the consensus favorite to win the 2020 World Series.
Boston Red Sox ace, Chris Sale, is the second-best favorite at the Westgate to win the AL Cy Young at 5/1 odds.
Even in the wake of the Astros cheating scandal, future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander is the third-best favorite to win the AL Cy Young at 8/1. Verlander edged out teammate, Gerrit Cole, for the 2019 AL Cy Young.
Over in the National League, Max Scherzer of the defending champion Washington Nationals, is the second favorite to win the NL Cy Young at 4/1 odds. His teammate, Stephen Strasburg, opted to stay in DC and re-sign with the Nats. The Westgate listed Strasburg as 16/1 odds to win the NL Cy Young.
AL Aces: Cole, Bieber, Kluber, Snell, Glasnow
Three Yankees were listed in the top 10 picks to win the Cy Young Award. The Bronx Bombers have a trio of aces at their disposal after Cole joined the rotation. Cole won 20 games with the Astros last year with 326 strikeouts, and an impressive 2.50 ERA and 0.89 WHIP, yet he missed out on winning the AL Cy Young. Cole is the consensus favorite to win the AL Cy Young during his first year in the Bronx.
Luis Severino missed most of last season due to injuries, but he’s expected to be back to old form come Opening Day. Severino is expected to be one of the best #2 guys in baseball next season. He went 19-8 in 2018 with a 3.39 ERA and 1.14 WHIP.
The Yankees acquired James Paxton from the Seattle Mariners in the offseason last year. Paxton struggled (5-6 record) in the first half, but looked like a different pitcher in the second half of the season with a 10-0 record.
2020 AL Cy Young Odds
Gerrit Cole (Yankees) 5/2
Chris Sale (Red Sox) 5/1
Justin Verlander (Astros) 8/1
Luis Severino (Yankees) 8/1
Mike Clevinger (Indians) 12/1
Corey Kluber (Rangers) 14/1
Blake Snell (Rays) 14/1
Tyler Glasnow (Rays) 14/1
James Paxton (Yankees) 14/1
Shane Bieber (Indians) 14/1
Chris Sale looked like a shadow of his former self last season with a 6-11 record and 4.40 ERA compared to the guy from 2018 who posted a 2.11 ERA and 0.86 WHIP.
Cleveland Indians manager Terry Francona has a pair of aces up his sleeve with Shane Bieber (15-8) and Mike Clevinger (13-4, 2.71 ERA). Clevinger is only 12/1 odds to win the Cy Young, while Bieber is 14/1 odds.
The Indians dealt their former ace, Corey Kluber, to Texas Rangers in the offseason. The two-time Cy Young winner missed most of last season with a broken forearm. Kluber is 14/1 odds to win another Cy Young.
NL Aces: deGrom, Scherzer, Flaherty, Buehler
The New York Mets have a couple of aces with deGrom and Noah Syndergaard. The Westgate posted deGrom as the NL Cy Young favorite at 5/2 odds, and listed Syndergaard at 20/1 odds. With two Cy Young victories in the last two seasons, can deGrom pull off the hat trick?
The young Nats loved joking around with their ace by calling him “Old Man,” but Max Scherzer still had plenty of gas in the tank for October baseball. Old Man Scherzer went 3-0 in the postseason with a 2.40 ERA. It’s nearly impossible to repeat as World Series champions in the modern age, but Scherzer’s age (35) might be the reason to fade him even though he’s one of the other favorites at 4/1.
2020 NL Cy Young Odds
Jacob deGrom (Mets) 5/2
Max Scherzer (Nationals) 4/1
Jack Flaherty (Cardinals) 5/1
Walker Buehler (Dodgers) 5/1
Stephen Strasburg (Nationals) 16/1
Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers) 20/1
Luis Castillo (Reds) 20/1
Aaron Nola (Phillies) 20/1
Noah Syndergaard (Mets) 20/1
The Dodgers missed out on advancing to their third-straight World Series appearance. They will be on a mission to return to the Series this year, especially in the wake of the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox cheating scandals. Walker Buehler, the current Dodgers ace, is only 5/1 odds to win the NL Cy Young. His teammate, Clayton Kershaw, won the NL Cy Young three times.
The Cardinals wouldn’t have made their deep postseason run without Jack Flaherty’s magical second half. He finished the 2019 season with an 11-8 record, a 2.75 ERA, and a 0.97 WHIP. Flaherty is only 5/1 odds to win his first Cy Young.
