The first month of the Major League Baseball season has already delivered some great performances, but these pitchers are putting themselves in the Cy Young Award race early on.
Top Three American League Candidates
Tarik Skubal, Detroit Tigers – It’s no surprise that the reigning back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner is a candidate once again after the first month of the season. Skubal has a 2.70 ERA through seven starts and has already notched 45 strikeouts. His WHIP currently sits at 0.95, and he is once again looking dominant. Skubal is one of the few pitchers in baseball that fans can count on to continue dominating over the course of the season. He should be seen as the favorite for that reason alone, but some other early candidates have a chance to dethrone him if they can continue their strong starts.
Jose Soriano, Los Angeles Angels – Through seven starts, the Los Angeles Angels star has the best ERA in baseball among starters (0.84). He had a 3.89 ERA and just 51 starts coming into the season, having also pitched 40 games in relief. However, this season, he looks like a completely different pitcher. He is tied for the second-most strikeouts in baseball with 49. Hitters are hitting just .164 against him as well. He started the season off with four straight quality starts and will now look to carry his success through the summer.
Cam Schlittler, New York Yankees – Schlittler showed he can be a dominant arm in his short stint with the big league team last season. However, this year, he has hit the ground running and is clearly one of the best pitchers in the game through a month of action. He has a 1.51 ERA and 49 strikeouts. He has the second-best ERA in the American League, and his WHIP sits at 0.74. He has given the New York Yankees another ace-type arm while they await the return of Gerrit Cole. His other rotation mate, Max Fried, also had a case to be on this list.
Top Three National League Candidates
Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates – Skenes will be playing catch-up for most of the season after a blowup start on opening day. However, he is clearly one of the most dominant players in the sport, and finds himself as the betting favorite to win the NL Cy Young Award as the calendar flips to May. His 3.18 ERA is very high for his standards, but if you remove the opening day start, where his defense really let him down, he has a 1.89 ERA. He has 39 strikeouts this season, but the stuff looks as good as ever. Like Skubal, fans can count on him continuing to dominate hitters all year, and by the end of the season, his numbers will look more like the numbers fans are used to.
Nolan McLean, New York Mets – The New York Mets starter still has rookie status, but he is pitching like a seasoned vet. He has a 2.55 ERA through six starts and 45 strikeouts. He is striking out a third of the hitters he’s facing, and showing off his sweeper. He has thrown the pitch less than he did last year, throwing his four-seamer more so far this year, but his sweeper is one of the nastiest pitches in all of baseball. His sweeper has above-average vertical drop and horizontal break, making it one of his most effective pitches. He has a six-pitch mix (sinker, four-seamer, sweeper, curveball, changeup and cutter) and has recorded multiple strikeouts with each pitch this season.
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers – Shohei Ohtani winning a Cy Young Award would only add to his already legendary resume. He has a 0.60 ERA through five starts this season and has recorded 34 strikeouts. He has a 28.6% strikeout rate and is in the 98th percentile for pitching run value. His fastball has sat at 97.9 mph this season, and he has looked as dominant on the mound as he has at the plate. He has gone six innings in all of his starts, allowing just two earned runs on the season. In two of his outings, he allowed two of fewer hits. The only question for Ohtani will be how the Dodgers manage him, and if he will be able to make enough starts.
Photo: Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher José Soriano (59) plays during a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
