Much has surprised fans across Philadelphia in 2024. The Phillies have gotten out to a hot start and maintained a steady pace in a hunt for a division title.
The All-Star votes are continuing to stack up, on top of Bryce Harper getting the free pass to start the game with the most overall votes in the National League. Possibly the more dramatic saga of this new Phillies team is Caleb Cotham's pitching staff — a group of players who are flat-out cold-blooded on the mound right now.
The Phillies lead all of baseball in starting pitching ERA with an impressive 2.96. Just for good measure they also have the overall ERA held captive with 3.08. They have remained as consistent as can be, led by MLB ERA leader Ranger Suárez.
Phillies starter takes home midseason Cy Young Award from MLB insider
MLB Insider Bob Nightengale of USA Today has picked Suárez as his midseason NL Cy Young Award winner. In 17 starts, Suárez has a 10-2 record, a 2.27 ERA, a 0.98 WHIP with 99 strikeouts and 21 walks in 103 innings pitched. Suárez also logged a complete game shutout earlier in the year against the Rockies.
Suárez, a Venezuelan native, has been a fan favorite since he joined the major league club in 2018. His demeanor on and off the field has fans constantly singing his praises. In a year where the pitching has come all together, it has been Suárez leading the charge with Cristopher Sánchez and Zack Wheeler right behind for the NL ERA title.
Ranger Suárez sits down his 10th Ranger, matching a career high. pic.twitter.com/QC5UoZB4Ve
— MLB (@MLB) May 22, 2024
Per Baseball Savant, he has continued to master his six-pitch mix and is getting more swing and miss than in previous years. Suárez's batting average against is 56 points lower than it was in 2023 at .211. He is also throwing his changeup 17.1 percent of the time and getting the swing and miss 40.1 percent of the time.
With Suárez's newfound approach to avoiding barrels every start, the selection for the midseason NL Cy Young Award could very well be a precursor to the real thing at the end of the year. The competition is pretty close to home, with the Phillies clogging up the first three spots, but Suárez is looking to cement his name all on his own for the second half of the year.