TORONTO – Robbie Ray’s remarkable rebound from a dismal pandemic season was rewarded with the American League Cy Young Award on Wednesday, a just reward for a dominant 2021 with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Ray earned 29 first-place votes to beat out Gerrit Cole of the New York Yankees, who only got one. Lance Lynn of the Chicago White Sox finished third in voting by the Baseball Writers Association of America.
The 30-year-old from Brentwood, Tenn., is the fourth Blue Jays pitcher to win the award, joining Pat Hentgen (1996), Roger Clemens (1997, 1998) and Roy Halladay (2003).
Ray earned the honour by posting a 2.84 ERA and 1.045 WHIP with 248 strikeouts in 193.1 innings across 32 starts, all tops in the league.
The dominance came after a difficult 2020 in which he posted a 6.62 ERA and 45 walks in 51.2 innings over 12 games between Arizona and the Blue Jays, who acquired him at the deadline.
| GS | IP | ERA | FIP | WHIP | HR | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ray | 32 | 193.1 | 2.48 | 3.69 | 1.045 | 33 | 52 | 248 |
| Cole | 30 | 181.1 | 3.23 | 2.92 | 1.059 | 24 | 41 | 243 |
| Lynn | 28 | 157 | 2.69 | 3.32 | 1.07 | 18 | 45 | 176 |
Earlier Wednesday, Ray officially declined the club’s $18.4 million qualifying offer, an expected move given that he’s one of the top free agents on the market,
Last month, Ray was named the AL’s Outstanding Pitcher in the MLBPA’s player choice awards.
