2023 Cy Young Aces Statistical Face Off: Gerrit Cole vs. Blake Snell

Now that the new year is here, it’s time to talk about the past year’s highlights. While everyone has the World Series win of the Texas Rangers or Shohei Ohtani’s historic year fresh in their minds, other equally memorable moments won hearts too this past year. The Cy Young award-winning seasons of the New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole and most wanted free agent Blake Snell deserve a deeper analysis.

So it’s only fair to do just that. Here’s how the SnellZilla roared again after a few years of meandering and how the lifelong Yankee Gerrit Cole forever etched his name in the Pinstripes’ history. What were their highlights and how do these two Cy Young winners compare to each other?

The extraordinary stories of Gerrit Cole and Blake Snell

Despite being in underperforming teams, both Gerrit Cole and Blake Snell were a class apart. Though both of these players have had better seasons in some aspects, 2023 was when they had their best overall performances. With Cole leading the league with a .789 win rate and Snell having the league-best 2.25 ERA, they both excelled in different fields. 

What makes Cole’s achievements so impressive is that he did it in AL East – perhaps the toughest division in baseball today. With an ERA of 2.63 and 222 strikeouts in the league-high 209 innings, Cole’s consistency was superhuman. But his greatest achievements this year were the two shutouts that he threw against the Minnesota Twins in April and the Toronto Blue Jays in September. All in all, with a WAR of 7.4, Cole also ranked 11 in the MVP race.

Not to be outdone, Blake Snell’s year was just as eventful. 2023 proved to be the year when everything clicked for the SnellZilla. Back to his scary best, Snell was one of the few bright spots of the highly unlucky Padres squad. His league-best 2.25 ERA was accompanied by 234 strikeouts. However, Snell gave up 99 walks – the highest in the league! Still with a WAR of 6 and a win rate of .609, Snell ranked 13 in the MVP race.

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The eventful year for Snell didn’t end with the Cy Young award win. His free agency has also become the talk of the town.

Which town will SnellZilla conquer next?

2023 came as an elixir for Snell. He had been meandering after his 2018 Cy Young award win, his value rapidly declining. 2023 showed that Snellzilla still has some bite left in him, and perhaps that’s why his contract is expected to cross the triple figures quite easily. 

Several teams have been associated with the left-handed pitcher during the offseason, including the Los Angeles Angels Chicago Cubs, the Boston Red Sox, and the San Diego Padres, who currently have the player on their roster. With the San Francisco Giants emerging as the frontrunner for Snell after they lost the Yoshinobu Yamamoto sweepstakes, the Scott Boras client could be starting 2024 with a bang already.

Fans would hope that unlike in 2019, Snell follows up his award-winning year with more consistent performances. Hopefully, so will Gerrit Cole.

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