Chris Sale was one of the ace left-handers Tarik Skubal idolized as a teenager. Now the two will be linked forever after winning their first Cy Young Awards on Wednesday.
Skubal was a unanimous pick for the American League honor following a brilliant season with the Detroit Tigers. Sale’s selection in the National League capped an incredible comeback with the Atlanta Braves after the 35-year-old had been derailed by injuries since helping Boston win the 2018 World Series.
“It means a lot. It’s a special night,” Sale said. “I just can’t express how thankful I am for everybody that stuck by me. It would have been easy to jump ship and write me off.”
Skubal and Sale shared the MLB lead with 18 wins this season and dominated their respective leagues.
Sale went 18-3 and topped the NL with 225 strikeouts, while his 2.38 ERA in 29 starts was the best among all major league qualifiers. It was his first season in the National League during a big league career that began in 2010 with the Chicago White Sox.
Skubal, who turned 28 on Wednesday, was 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA and a big league-best 228 strikeouts in 31 starts. The left-hander got all 30 first-place votes in AL balloting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America that was completed before the playoffs.
Sale received 26 firsts, with NL runner-up Zack Wheeler from Philadelphia getting the other four.
“If you look at his career, it’s no surprise that he’s winning this award,” Skubal said about Sale. “To be able to share this award and win it the same year, and win the same triple crown award in the AL and NL, that’s something that’s really special to me, and it’s awesome. I’ll be able to live with that the rest of my life.”
Pittsburgh Pirates righty Paul Skenes finished third, two days after being selected NL Rookie of the Year.
Kansas City starter Seth Lugo was the AL runner-up, with Cleveland closer Emmanuel Clase (47 saves) coming in third.
It was the first time since 2011 that someone won the pitching triple crown in both leagues. There have been 25 occasions when a pitcher led his league in wins, strikeouts and ERA among qualifiers — and a Cy Young Award followed every time.
Sale didn’t have any major injury issues in his Braves debut until he was scratched because of back spasms from their final regular-season game, which they needed to win to make the playoffs. He was then left off the roster for their Wild Card Series loss to San Diego.
Atlanta acquired Sale in a trade last December after he made only 31 starts for the Red Sox from 2021-23. He missed the 2020 season and most of 2021 after Tommy John surgery. He made only two starts in 2022 after he fractured a rib and then broke his left pinkie. He broke his right wrist riding a bicycle in August 2023, ending his final season with Boston.
Sale was named the NL Comeback Player of the Year last week at Major League Baseball’s All-MLB Awards Show.
“Talk about motivation, right? To be able to show my sons hard work, dedication and not giving up. My wife had my back the whole time. I’m sure I was a real peach at times during some of those injuries,” he said. “And just with my parents, my family, I was talking to my dad the other day about this and whether it did or didn’t happen, he was proud of me.”
