CY Young in Sight? Dylan Cease’s 7 Strikeouts Add Momentum to the Ace’s Pursuit of the Ultimate Prize

Few expected pain to “Cease” to exist in the San Diego Padres this season. However, the arrival of Dylan Cease has helped them in easing some of that 2023 hurt. The former Chicago White Sox ace has hit the ground running for the Friars. More than that, Cease looks better than he ever did in the Sox. That’s a scary prospect for the opposition but is great news for the man who is aiming for the Cy Young award this season. 

Last night Dylan Cease started his third game for the Padres. And for the third straight time, he stole the show. With just one run and two hits given, Cease struck out seven batters. It was the kind of performance that made the Pads’ manager Mike Shildt exclaim “His stuff is so nasty. Sometimes you get the opportunity to sit back and just appreciate when somebody does something spectacular on the baseball field.”

2024 holds special importance for Cease and Padres. Both of them are coming off an underwhelming 2023. The pitcher has clearly understood his assignment as he currently leads the National League in opponent batting average (.130). With an ERA of 1.99, Cease ranks 5th in the league and is similarly fifth with 27 strikeouts (via MLB.com). 

More importantly, the 2022 Cy Young finalist looks confident in his abilities. In the past game against the Milwaukee Brewers Cease stopped the skipper from calling him out. The pitcher followed that up with his 7th strikeout and only then left the field. That is a hallmark of a player who is completely in tune with his abilities and has found a perfect zone to operate in.

All of this points towards one thing – the Cy Young pursuit is on for Cease. He’s ready to treat 2023 as an anomaly and wants to resume from where he left off in 2022. While the Padres’ fans are quickly falling in love with their newest pitcher, the squad is enamored by his attitude.

Dylan Cease impresses the Padres with his mentality 

“The guy’s a star. He’s an ace. He showed it today,” Fernando Tatis Jr. said. “Hopefully, he can keep it that way for the rest of the season.” Similarly, the skipper is highly impressed by the “durability” of Dylan Cease. The ace has gone three straight games with 100+ pitches, something that most pitchers haven’t been able to do this season.

“Dylan also has a strong competitive spirit. He goes out and gets after it,” Shildt said. However, with 5 walks given Cease wasn’t happy with his control. But that’s quite common this early into the season. With Cease gradually getting control one can only imagine how high he can climb. The National League is shaping up to be highly competitive this season for pitchers.

It’s Dylan Cease up against Shota Imanaga (who has been brilliant), Yoshinobu Yamamoto (who is growing confident with every game), and a bunch of other pitchers. For the lovers of the mound – this is the peak. This is the “Mound” Everest and on top lies the Cy Young award. 

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