The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year Award

By the Second World War, The Sporting News, had been giving Player of the Year and Manager of the Year awards since 1936, and an annual Most Valuable Player Award since 1929. In 1944, The Sporting News inaugurated its Pitcher of the Year Award, which has been given each year since to the most outstanding pitcher in each league, with a brief hiatus from 1946 to 1947. This award was established before there was a Cy Young Award, MLB's official honor for the best pitcher in each league. Three knuckleball pitchers have won the award: Joe Niekro, Wilbur Wood and R. A. Dickey. It would have been Newhouser's third consecutive win, a feat not yet accomplished by an American League pitcher; however, Sporting News did not issue the award in 1946 or 1947. In 1981, Fernando Valenzuela won three The Sporting News awards: Pitcher of the Year, Rookie Pitcher of the Year, and Player of the Year. ==Winners==

Key American League Listed below in reverse chronological order are the American League pitchers chosen by Sporting News as recipients of the Pitcher of the Year Award. American League starting pitchers . American League relief pitchers American League pitchers , 2005 winner, was the MLB leader in BB per 9 IP (1.11) in 2015, while pitching for the Mets. , two-time winner, was the MLB ERA champ in 2008, while pitching for the Mets. , three-time winner, reached 3,000 strikeouts while pitching for the Mets. , 1977 winner, won his only World Series pitching for the Mets. , 1953 winner. , the first and youngest player to win 2 consecutive Pitcher of the Year Awards. National League Listed below in reverse chronological order are the National League pitchers chosen by Sporting News as recipients of the Pitcher of the Year Award. National League starting pitchers National League relief pitchers , Two (2) time winner, had a 1.31 ERA and averaged almost 2 strikeouts per inning in 2022. National League pitchers , 2012 NL winner and last knuckleballer to win award, pitching for the Mets. , two-time NL winner, won his 300th game while pitching for the Mets. , 1985 NL winner and youngest player to win Pitcher of the Year Award, pitching for the Mets. , two-time NL winner at Shea Stadium, 1974. Tom is one of two players to have 300 wins, 3,000Ks and a sub 3.00 career ERA. ==Players==

Multiple wins Several players have won the Pitcher of the Year Award more than once: Roger Clemens has the most (five) Pitcher of the Year Awards, is in the top ten for all-time wins and strikeouts, and is considered to be one of the best pitchers of all time. Clemens' alleged use of performance-enhancing drugs is the major stumbling block to be elected to the Hall of Fame. Starting pitchers that have won three or more Pitcher of the Year Awards and the year they were inducted into Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. Active player statistics are through the 2023 season. MLB Hall of Famers won the award in 1952 and 1953. won the award in 1968 and 1970. MLB Hall of Famers that won the SN Pitchers of the Year award. • On May 9, 2013, Toronto's R. A. Dickey (6IP, 5K, 5H, 5BB, 2ER) pitched against David Price (8IP, 8K, 7H, 1BB, 2ER) of the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays won in 10 innings, 5–4, and neither starting pitcher got a decision. • Arizona's Zach Greinke (WP:7-3, 11K, 7IP, 4H, 0BB, 0R) bested (3–0) Houston's Dallas Keuchel (LP:3-7, 6IP, 6K, 6H, 1BB, 3 ER) on June 2, 2016. The lost years , 1951 winner, could have won in 1946 and 1947. The award was suspended for 1946–1947. A list of the lost year's top two pitchers in each league based on a pitcher rating composed of wins, ERA and strikeouts is below. A pitcher rating of 6.0 is considered very good. A rating of 9.00 (1.5*6) is rare. Bob Feller and Hal Newhouser in 1946 AL had a rating above 9. ==Organizations==

The Los Angeles Dodgers are the only organization whose pitchers have won the Pitcher of the Year Award in 5 consecutive years: 1962–1966 (Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax) and 2013–2017 (Kershaw, Greinke and Jansen). Los Angeles (Brooklyn) Dodgers pitchers have won the award 18 times ; Atlanta (Boston and Milwaukee) Braves pitchers have won the award 13 times. The following three (3) organizations have never had a pitcher win the award: Cincinnati Reds, Colorado Rockies, and Texas Rangers. The Detroit Tigers have three pitchers who have won consecutive awards — Hal Newhouser (1944–1945), Denny McLain (1968–1969) and Justin Verlander (2011–2012). Each was also Player of the Year and AL MVP at least once while being Pitcher of the Year. The Atlanta (Boston and Milwaukee) Braves also have three pitchers who have won consecutive awards — Warren Spahn (1957–1958), Greg Maddux (1992–1995) and Craig Kimbrel (2013–2014). ==See also==