As the race for October heats up so too does the race for several awards in the MLB, including the AL Cy Young Award. It's been a back-and-forth race, especially in the sportsbooks and there's a new favorite. New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole is the new odds-on favorite for the award at FanDuel.
Cole enters Tuesday's MLB slate as the slight favorite over Houston Astros starter Framber Valdez. Cole is running at +220 odds with Valdez at +250. Kevin Gausman and Shane McClanahan round out the top four as the only other players with triple-digit odds.
Cole, who is probably the best active MLB pitcher who has never won the Cy Young Award, is top-five in the American League in wins, ERA, innings pitched and strikeouts. He is the only man in the MLB who is top-five in his respective league in all of those categories.
Cole put together a fantastic outing on the mound on Sunday, striking out a season-high 11 batters through six innings. He allowed one run on two hits, but the Yankees bullpen blew a two-run lead and New York lost in extra innings.
Valdez has been a rock for the Astros rotation as well. He has a 2.76 ERA in 18 starts this season and is among the league leaders in innings pitched and strikeouts. Both Cole and Valdez were selected to the AL team for the MLB All-Star Game, though only Cole played, starting the game on the mound for the American League.
The race for the AL Cy Young Award will likely be tight all the way through the rest of the season. Other contenders could emerge and health will play a big factor. For now, Gerrit Cole is the man to beat.
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