Justin Verlander and Sandy Alcantara won the Cy Young Awards in their respective leagues by unanimous votes last year.
But there never was any chance of both pitchers repeating those dominant performances in 2023. That’s because they now compete in the same league.
Verlander left the Houston Astros and the American League as a free agent over the winter, joining the New York Mets. He now finds himself in the National League East, the same division as Alcantara, who remains with the Miami Marlins.
Only one of these preeminent righties would win a head-to-head battle for the NL’s Cy Young Award. Or, if early trends hold true, perhaps neither will be honored in 2023.
Verlander was hampered by a muscle strain that delayed his first start until May 4, while Alcantara compiled a rocky 1-4 record with a 4.91 earned run average in the first month and a half of the season.
The change in their fortunes is evident in their base values for 2022 and 2023. Verlander led the majors with a BV of minus-127 last year, which means that he surrendered 127 fewer bases than the average pitcher would have yielded under the same circumstances. Alcantara was third-best in the NL at minus-92. (The higher the negative number, the better the performance.)
Their corresponding base values for the first quarter of the current season were equally pedestrian — minus-six for each pitcher — leaving them well off the Cy Young pace. (Click here to learn more about how BV is calculated.)
Zac Gallen of the Arizona Diamondbacks is the early frontrunner for the National League’s Cy Young Award, thanks to his BV of minus-51, the best figure for any big-league pitcher at the season’s quarter pole, which was reached on May 15. The NL’s distant runner-up is Dustin May of the Los Angeles Dodgers, whose BV of minus-34 trails Gallen by 17 bases.
Eduardo Rodriguez of the Detroit Tigers is the surprise leader in the American League at minus-47, with Joe Ryan of the Minnesota Twins on his heels at minus-45.
Look below to see the best base values for pitchers in each league at the one-quarter mark of the 2023 season, as well as the individual leader for each team.
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American League top 10
1. Eduardo Rodriguez, Tigers, BV -47
2. Joe Ryan, Twins, BV -45
3. Tyler Wells, Orioles, BV -37
4. Yennier Cano, Orioles, BV -35
5. Sonny Gray, Twins, BV -32
6. George Kirby, Mariners, BV -31
7. Gerrit Cole, Yankees, BV -30
7. Dane Dunning, Rangers, BV -30
7. Bryce Miller, Mariners, BV -30
10. Drew Rasmussen, Rays, BV -29
National League top 10
1. Zac Gallen, Diamondbacks, BV -51
2. Dustin May, Dodgers, BV -34
3. Spencer Strider, Braves, BV -33
4. Mitch Keller, Pirates, BV -32
5. Anthony DeSclafani, Giants, BV -31
5. Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers, BV -31
7. Justin Steele, Cubs, BV -30
8. Drew Smyly, Cubs, BV -23
9. David Bednar, Pirates, BV -21
9. Brent Suter, Rockies, BV -21
American League team leaders
Angels — Shohei Ohtani, BV -24
Astros — Framber Valdez, BV -26
Athletics — Mason Miller, BV -12
Blue Jays — Kevin Gausman and Erik Swanson, BV -16
Guardians — Shane Bieber, BV -17
Mariners — George Kirby, BV -31
Orioles — Tyler Wells, BV -37
Rangers — Dane Dunning, BV -30
Rays — Drew Rasmussen, BV -29
Red Sox — Josh Winckowski, BV -15
Royals — Josh Staumont, BV -8
Tigers — Eduardo Rodriguez, BV -47
Twins — Joe Ryan, BV -45
White Sox — Lucas Giolito, BV -11
Yankees — Gerrit Cole, BV -30
National League team leaders
Braves — Spencer Strider, BV -33
Brewers — Corbin Burnes, BV -19
Cardinals — Chris Stratton, BV -16
Cubs — Justin Steele, BV -30
Diamondbacks — Zac Gallen, BV -51
Dodgers — Dustin May, BV -34
Giants — Anthony DeSclafani, BV -31
Marlins — JT Chargois and Dylan Floro, BV -9
Mets — David Robertson, BV -16
Nationals — Hunter Harvey, BV -12
Padres — Josh Hader, BV -18
Phillies — Matt Strahm and Zack Wheeler, BV -17
Pirates — Mitch Keller, BV -32
Reds — Alexis Diaz, BV -15
Rockies — Brent Suter, BV -21