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In voting results that could mimic that of the Baseball Writers Association of America later on Wednesday, Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw lost out in the voting for the SB Nation National League Pitcher of the Year, finishing in second place.
R.A. Dickey of the Mets won the award, narrowly outpointing Kershaw, 157 to 154. Dickey received 13 first-place votes, Kershaw received 11 first-place votes, Gio Gonzalez of the Nationals garnered nine first-place votes, and the Reds' Johnny Cueto got two first-place votes. Kershaw was left off one of 35 ballots, but even more alarming was that R.A. Dickey was somehow left off three ballots.
Kershaw led the league in ERA (2.53), WHIP (1.023), FanGraphs wins above replacement (5.5), and Baseball-Reference wins above replacement (6.2). He finished one strikeout behind Dickey (230) for the league led. Dickey also led the league in innings (233⅔) and was second in wins (20) to Gonzalez (21). Cueto led the league with a 152 ERA+, just ahead of Kershaw (150).
Kershaw was a co-winner of the SB Nation NL Pitcher of the Year Award in 2011, along with Roy Halladay of the Phillies. Kershaw won the NL Cy Young Award last season, and is one of three finalists for this year's award, along with Dickey and Gonzalez.
Craig Minami and I both voted for this award, and happened to submit the same ballot.
- Me: Kershaw, Dickey, Cueto, Gonzalez, Craig Kimbrel
- Craig: Kershaw, Dickey, Cueto, Gonzalez, Kimbrel
Justin Verlander won the SBN AL Pitcher of the Year Award, capturing 23 of 26 first-place votes, the second straight season that the Tigers' ace was so honored. David Price of the Rays, who received two first-place votes, finished second, and Felix Hernandez finished third. Jered Weaver of the Angels, who received the other first-place vote, finished fifth, behind Chris Sale of the White Sox.
Points were awarded as follows: seven points for a first place vote, four points per second place vote, three points per third place vote, two points per fourth place vote, and one point for every fifth place vote. Here are the full NL voting results:
| Player | Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R.A. Dickey | New York Mets | 13 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 157 | |
| Clayton Kershaw | Los Angeles Dodgers | 11 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 154 |
| Gio Gonzalez | Washington Nationals | 9 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 129 |
| Johnny Cueto | Cincinnati Reds | 2 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 73 |
| Cliff Lee | Philadelphia Phillies | 5 | 4 | 3 | 26 | ||
| Matt Cain | San Francisco Giants | 1 | 5 | 4 | 17 | ||
| Cole Hamels | Philadelphia Phillies | 1 | 3 | 5 | 15 | ||
| Craig Kimbrel | Atlanta Braves | 1 | 2 | 6 | 13 | ||
| Wade Miley | Arizona Diamondbacks | 3 | 1 | 7 | |||
| Kris Medlen | Atlanta Braves | 3 | 3 | ||||
| Lance Lynn | St. Louis Cardinals | 1 | 1 |
The BBWAA will announce the winners of the NL and AL Cy Young Awards during a one-hour special on MLB Network, beginning at 3 p.m. PT.