Pitching shapes every MLB season, and the Cy Young Award highlights the best on the mound. From 2010 to 2025, elite arms defined games and set new standards for excellence in both leagues.
This era featured power pitchers, control specialists, and rare two-way dominance. Teams changed how they valued pitching because of these standout seasons.
These years show patterns in pitching trends and team success. The winners on this list helped redefine greatness on the mound.
Cy Young Award Overview
The Cy Young Award honors MLB’s top pitchers each season. Voters choose winners from the American League and National League using standards that have evolved over time.
Since 2010, modern data has influenced how writers judge pitching dominance.
History and Significance
MLB introduced the Cy Young Award in 1956 to honor the best pitcher in the game. The league named the award after Cy Young, who still holds the record for most career wins.
From 1956 to 1966, one pitcher won the award across both leagues. Starting in 1967, MLB began giving one award per league, increasing recognition and reflecting league balance.
The Baseball Writers’ Association of America selects the winners every year. The award often defines a pitcher’s legacy and shapes Hall of Fame debates.
MLB provides a detailed background on the history of the Cy Young Award.
Selection Criteria
Thirty writers vote for each league’s award before the postseason. Each voter ranks pitchers from first to fifth place, and a point system decides the winner.
Voters focus on results and impact. Key factors include ERA, innings pitched, strikeouts, and run prevention.
Team success matters less than individual performance. Advanced stats now play a role, but voters still value durability and consistency.
The goal is to identify the pitcher who delivered the most value during the regular season. The Cy Young Award voting process explains this in detail.
Award Evolution Since 2010
Since 2010, voters have relied more on data that measures true pitching value. Stats like WAR, ERA+, and FIP help compare pitchers across teams and ballparks.
Voters focus less on pitcher wins. Starters with fewer wins but stronger overall numbers now receive serious support.
Relievers rarely win, though dominant seasons can draw attention. Recent winners often post high strikeout rates, low walk totals, and heavy workloads.
Complete year-by-year results appear on Baseball‑Reference’s Cy Young winners list, showing how voting trends have shifted.
MLB Cy Young Award Winners 2010-2025
From 2010 to the mid-2020s, the Cy Young Award recognized elite pitchers who led their leagues in results and consistency. This period includes repeat champions, first-time standouts, and veterans reaching new peaks.
American League Cy Young Winners by Year
American League winners combined durability with strong run prevention. Several pitchers won more than once, showing long-term dominance.
Voters emphasized innings pitched, earned run average, and strikeout totals.
American League Cy Young Award Winners
| Year | Pitcher |
|---|---|
| 2010 | Félix Hernández |
| 2011 | Justin Verlander |
| 2012 | David Price |
| 2013 | Max Scherzer |
| 2014 | Corey Kluber |
| 2015 | Dallas Keuchel |
| 2016 | Rick Porcello |
| 2017 | Corey Kluber |
| 2018 | Blake Snell |
| 2019 | Justin Verlander |
| 2020 | Shane Bieber |
| 2021 | Robbie Ray |
| 2022 | Justin Verlander |
| 2023 | Gerrit Cole |
| 2024 | Tarik Skubal |
| 2025 | Not yet awarded |
Baseball-Reference keeps a full historical record of American League Cy Young winners by season.
National League Cy Young Winners by Year
National League winners often mixed strikeout-heavy pitching with control and efficiency. Some pitchers won in different years with different teams.
National League Cy Young Award Winners
| Year | Pitcher |
|---|---|
| 2010 | Roy Halladay |
| 2011 | Clayton Kershaw |
| 2012 | R.A. Dickey |
| 2013 | Clayton Kershaw |
| 2014 | Clayton Kershaw |
| 2015 | Jake Arrieta |
| 2016 | Max Scherzer |
| 2017 | Max Scherzer |
| 2018 | Jacob deGrom |
| 2019 | Jacob deGrom |
| 2020 | Trevor Bauer |
| 2021 | Corbin Burnes |
| 2022 | Sandy Alcántara |
| 2023 | Blake Snell |
| 2024 | Chris Sale |
| 2025 | Not yet awarded |
MLB tracks voting results and league history for National League Cy Young Award winners.
Pitching Dominance and Statistical Highlights
From 2010 to 2025, Cy Young winners set new standards for elite pitching. They led their leagues in run prevention, strikeouts, and workload.
Record-Breaking Performances
Several winners produced seasons that ranked among the best of the era. Shane Bieber’s 2020 season featured a 1.63 ERA and 122 strikeouts in a shortened schedule, earning a unanimous vote.
Justin Verlander followed in 2022 with a 1.75 ERA at age 39, one of the lowest marks since 2000. Paul Skenes won the 2025 NL award with a 1.97 ERA and led the league in ERA+ and WHIP.
Tarik Skubal posted a 2.21 ERA in 2025 and improved on his 2024 numbers.
A full list of winners and voting details appears on Baseball-Reference’s Cy Young Award winners page.
Notable Streaks and Repeats
Repeat winners showed remarkable consistency. Justin Verlander won three Cy Young Awards during his career, including two in this period.
Max Scherzer captured the award in 2013, 2016, and 2017, each time with a different level of strikeout dominance. Tarik Skubal won back-to-back AL Cy Young Awards in 2024 and 2025, becoming the first repeat winner since the early 2000s.
Blake Snell stood out by winning in both leagues, adding an NL Cy Young in 2023 to his earlier AL win.
Historical context for repeat winners is on the MLB Cy Young Award history page.
Era-Leading Pitching Metrics
Advanced metrics shaped how voters judged dominance. ERA+, FIP, and WHIP often separated winners from close competitors.
Corbin Burnes led the NL in 2021 with a 1.63 FIP and a 6.88 strikeout-to-walk ratio, showing control and power. Sandy Alcantara led MLB in innings in 2022.
Gerrit Cole topped the AL in innings and WHIP in 2023. Skubal and Skenes led their leagues in ERA+, showing effectiveness beyond raw win totals.
Recent league-leading stats are tracked in detail by Sporting News’ Cy Young winner breakdown.
Impactful Seasons and Standout Players
Several Cy Young seasons from 2010 to 2025 stood out for dominance, sudden breakthroughs, or sustained excellence. These years shaped how voters judged pitching value.
Unanimous Winners
A unanimous vote signals clear separation from the field. In 2011, Justin Verlander earned every first-place vote after leading the American League in wins, innings, and strikeouts.
He paired power with durability and removed doubt from the race, as shown in the MLB Cy Young Award winners list. Clayton Kershaw followed with a historic 2014 season.
He posted a 1.77 ERA and won the National League award without opposition. Jacob deGrom repeated that feat in 2018 by allowing few runs despite low run support.
Breakout Campaigns
Some Cy Young wins marked a sharp rise instead of a long buildup. Jake Arrieta’s 2015 season with the Cubs showed this pattern.
He dominated the second half, cut his ERA under 2.00, and carried Chicago into the postseason. Blake Snell followed a similar path in 2018.
He improved command, limited hard contact, and led the league in ERA. Sandy Alcantara’s 2022 win also fit this mold.
He led all pitchers in innings, proving value through workload as much as run prevention.
Common traits of breakout winners
- Sharp year-to-year stat improvement
- Clear role as staff ace
- Heavy late-season impact
Veteran Achievements
Veteran pitchers left a strong mark during this span. Justin Verlander won again in 2019 and 2022, becoming one of the oldest winners in league history.
He combined velocity with precise control deep into his career. Max Scherzer added multiple Cy Young awards in his 30s by maintaining elite strikeout rates and consistency.
Zack Greinke’s 2015 win showed a different path. He relied on control, pitch mix, and efficiency instead of power.
These seasons reinforced how experience and adjustment can still drive top-level results.
Team and League Trends
From 2010 to 2025, Cy Young voting showed patterns tied to team development, pitching roles, and league differences. Some franchises produced repeat winners, while pitching styles changed how voters judged dominance.
The American and National Leagues followed distinct paths in how top pitchers earned recognition.
Franchises With Most Winners
A small group of teams produced many Cy Young winners during this span. The Dodgers, Tigers, and Mets stood out with strong pitching pipelines and long-term investment in arms.
Detroit’s run peaked with Justin Verlander and later Tarik Skubal, who won back-to-back AL awards in 2024 and 2025, as detailed in the Tarik Skubal 2025 Cy Young win.
Los Angeles benefited from depth, with winners like Clayton Kershaw supported by elite defense and coaching.
Teams that won often combined player development with analytics-driven decisions.
The full historical breakdown of winners by year supports this pattern across franchises, as shown in the complete Cy Young winners list on Baseball-Reference.
Shifts in Pitching Styles
Pitching styles changed sharply between 2010 and 2025. Starters threw fewer innings but focused on efficiency, strikeouts, and limiting hard contact.
Voters rewarded results over workload. High strikeout rates, low walk totals, and strong advanced metrics played a larger role.
Metrics like ERA+, FIP, and WAR often separated finalists. Pitchers with dominant secondary pitches, such as elite changeups or sliders, gained an edge.
Data tracking also influenced pitching plans. Teams optimized pitch usage and matchups, which helped pitchers stay effective with fewer innings.
Comparing AL and NL Cy Young Trends
The American League and National League showed different voting trends. The AL often favored power pitchers who thrived against deeper lineups and the designated hitter.
High strikeout totals and durability mattered more in the AL. The NL leaned toward efficiency and run prevention.
Pitchers in the NL benefited from facing opposing pitchers and more small-ball situations, especially before the universal DH. This difference showed up in ERA and innings pitched among winners.
In 2025, the contrast remained clear. Tarik Skubal won in the AL, while Paul Skenes earned the NL honor.
League context continued to shape how dominance looked on the mound.
Legacy and Influence on MLB
From 2010 to 2025, Cy Young winners shaped pitching trends, career paths, and league standards. Their success affected contracts and Hall of Fame cases.
Career Trajectories After Winning
Winning a Cy Young often changed a pitcher’s career path. Many winners became long-term aces and team leaders.
Pitchers like Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, and Clayton Kershaw turned their awards into extended dominance. Teams trusted them in big games and paid them as franchise cornerstones.
Other winners peaked for shorter periods. Pitchers such as Rick Porcello or Trevor Bauer saw strong seasons but did not sustain the same level for many years.
Injuries, age, or role changes played a part. Teams also used Cy Young wins to guide roster plans.
Front offices leaned on award history when offering extensions or trades.
Hall of Fame Impact
Cy Young Awards carry real weight in Hall of Fame debates. Voters often treat multiple wins as proof of elite skill over time.
Pitchers with repeated wins, such as Verlander and Scherzer, strengthened their cases well before retirement. Their awards supported high career totals in strikeouts, innings, and wins.
Single winners still faced closer review. Voters compared peak value against career length, health, and postseason impact.
Advanced stats now matter more than before. The award alone does not guarantee induction, but it clearly shapes the argument.
### Cultural Significance of the Cy Young Award
The Cy Young Award remains the top honor for MLB pitchers. It defines how fans measure pitching success each season.
Since 2010, the award has highlighted changes in pitching style. Voters now value strikeouts, control, and run prevention more than win totals.
This shift changed how teams train and use pitchers. Media coverage also increased.
Cy Young races turned into season-long storylines. Stats and weekly rankings drive these discussions.
Fans debate winners on TV, radio, and online. Young pitchers enter the league with Cy Young goals in mind.
The award sets a clear standard for excellence, as outlined in the Cy Young Award overview on Wikipedia.
