Kevin Gausman finishes 6th in Cy Young voting

Kevin Guasman had a brilliant season on the mound, and for that the San Francisco Giants right-handed pitcher has been awarded a healthy dose of Cy Young votes. The 2021 National League Cy Young Award was revealed on Wednesday, and Gausman finished sixth, behind winner Corbin Burnes (Milwaukee Brewers), former Giants prospect Zack Wheeler (Philadelphia Phillies), rivals Max Scherzer and Walker Buehler (Los Angeles Dodgers), and Brandon Woodruff (Brewers).

Also receiving Cy Young votes, but finishing below Gausman, were Adam Wainwright (St. Louis Cardinals), Julio Urías (Dodgers), and Jacob deGrom (New York Mets).

Gausman received a total of five votes worth seven points from the 30-person panel, which consists of two voters from each team’s market. One of Gausman’s votes was a third-place finish, while the other four were fifth place (voters get to select five names).

It’s a fitting honor for Gausman, who was one of the Cy Young frontrunners halfway through the season, but slowed down a bit in the second half. And it also points to how much he has rebuilt his career with the Giants: in 2021, his ninth season, Gausman earned the first Cy Young votes of his career, and made the All-Star Game for the first time.

While he definitely received some shine for being the number one starter on the team that led the Majors in wins, Gausman is a very deserving vote-getter. Of National League pitchers with at least 120 innings, Guasman finished seventh in ERA (2.81), eighth in FIP (3.00), and sixth in fWAR (4.8).

Congrats to Gausman, who becomes the first Giant to earn Cy Young votes since Madison Bumgarner and Johnny Cueto finished fourth and sixth, respectively, in 2016.