Surprise, surprise! Detroit Tigers left-handed pitcher Tarik Skubal has attained his second consecutive American League Cy Young Award.
This makes him the first American League winner to go back-to-back since Pedro Martinez in 1999 and 2000. And first back-to-back winner in general since Jacob deGrom in 2018-19.
Simultaneously former 2024 Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes with the Pittsburgh Pirates has returned to collect his second consecutive award as the unanimous winner for the 2025 National League Cy Young Awards.
This makes him the eighth pitcher in MLB history to attain both awards and the third pitcher in Pirates history to win the Cy Young.
Getting 26 out of 30 first-place votes, Skubal, with an 18-5 win-loss record, ended his season with a 2.21 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP across 195.1 innings.
Boston Red Sox ace Garret Crochet came in second with the direct opposite of four first-place votes and 26 second-place votes, leaving Houston Astros’ Hunter Brown with a steady third-place finish with 24 third-place votes.
The winner was announced by 2007 National League Cy Young winner Jake Peavy, with the full family backing Skubal with ultimate support and pride, as the 28-year-old topped his previous dominant season in 2024.
With a strong changeup that he used 31.4% of the time in his six-pitch arsenal, Skubal seemed to adjust perfectly against left and right-handed hitters under pressure and built upon the dominance that he’s continued to fuel throughout his mound appearances.
Prior to the award reveal, Skubal delivered sound advice on how he properly prepares for his moment leading up to it.
“Alot for me, mentally, it’s just trusting the preparation that I did the last four days,” Skubal said, “and when you get the ball and it’s your time to go, just go out their and compete, and enoy it…by the time the fifth day comes around, just go out there, have fun and enjoy it and embrace kind of anything that happens during the game.”
He also remarked that living pitch by pitch and keeping the game simple has helped throughout his journey and mental space as well.
For Pirates’ ace Skenes he received all 30 first-place votes in front of Phillies’ Cristopher Sánchez and Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
If you haven’t seen Skenes on the mound, you are truly in for a treat.
For the rest who are no strangers to the 23-year-old phenom and have been following him since his LSU National Championship win (or before), you are far from surprised by the outcome of this National League crowning.
Ending his season with a whooping 1.97 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP across 187.2 innings, looking at his 10-10 record, gives you the overview of his lack of run-production despite his commanding appearances on the mound.
This left not just Pirates fans, but Paul Skene fans frustrated with the lack of support and wanting to see him shine where he can thrive.
This award is just what the fanbase needs to look forward to a new season for the ace to build on with his current seven pitches that batters can’t seem to expect coming, and more that he continues to develop for a stronger resume.
Upon receiving the award, Skenes smiled on a couch with family and friends in deep gratitude as he explained his journey from not being the top baseball prospect coming out of high school and playing in college as a catcher to how he’s grown so far in the league.
“I never thought I’d end up here,” Skenes said, “Never thought I’d end up in the major leagues, much less winning a Cy Young. So, it doesn’t always work out how you think it’s going to, but if you stay the course, surround yourself with good people and work hard, that’s the minimum—you’re going to do exactly what you’re supposed to do, whatever that looks like.”
Skenes also expressed how blessed he felt to be healthy throughout the season while gaining the support of his team and organization, putting him in good spots to succeed.
Prior to the Cy Young Awards, the managerial sector of the award competition was released just last night (November 11th) as Stephen Vogt with the Cleveland Guardians (88-74 ) and Pat Murphy with the Milwaukee Brewers (92-70) each collected their second consecutive Manager of the Year awards.
Since the awards’ establishment in 1983, this was the first time two managers have earned a recurring award across both leagues.
The awards aren’t over yet.
Tomorrow (November 13th), the Most Valuable Player, ALL-MLB Teams, Hank Aaron Awards and more on the awards show will be announced on MLB Network at 9 p.m. ET.
