Misiorowski and Schlittler win unanimous Cy Youngs in 2nd seasons

Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski and the Yankees’ Cam Schlittler won unanimous Cy Young Awards on Wednesday. Each received every first-place vote from the 30 voters after his first complete season in the majors.

Both pitchers made their debuts in the summer of 2025. They are two of seven pitchers to win in their second season, while none has won in his true first season.

Misiorowski, 24, finished 16-5 and topped the majors in ERA, at 1.80, and strikeouts, with 252.

Against the Philadelphia Phillies in June, he needed 95 pitches for a one-hit shutout. He struck out 15 batters, with Kyle Schwarber’s fourth-inning single ending his bid for a perfect game.

“He's gotten confident. And he continues to get better, which is kind of crazy from the stuff he's done,” Brewers captain Christian Yelich said in October.

Misiorowski limited opposing hitters to a .157 average, the lowest on record for a qualified starter. Among pitchers who worked 150 innings or more, his 0.80 WHIP was the lowest over a complete regular season since Pedro Martinez’s 2000 campaign.

Misiorowski reached 100 mph or more on 1,115 pitches, a record since tracking began in 2008. His fastball averaged 100.6 mph, ESPN reported.

Sandy Koufax, J.R. Richard and Mike Scott were the only other pitchers since 1950 to lead the majors in ERA, strikeouts and opponents’ batting average, NBC Sports reported, citing The Associated Press.

Postseason play did not factor into the voting: Ballots had to be submitted before the postseason began.

Misiorowski pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings in Game 5 before a cramp forced him out of the Brewers’ 4-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays, which secured their first World Series title. He is the first pitcher to win both the Cy Young and the World Series in one season since Randy Johnson in 2001.

He joined Rollie Fingers, Pete Vuckovich and Corbin Burnes as the fourth Brewers pitcher to win the award.

Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sánchez placed second in the NL vote, followed by Atlanta’s Chris Sale.

Schlittler, 25, finished 14-6 with an American League-leading 1.95 ERA and 239 strikeouts, pitching 193⅔ innings across 33 starts.

Among qualified Yankees starters, only Spud Chandler and Ron Guidry posted a lower ERA. Schlittler’s AL-leading 215 ERA+ broke the franchise record, surpassing Guidry’s 208 in 1978.

ESPN reported that Schlittler gave up no more than one run in 21 starts and had a 1.16 ERA across 17 road starts.

“Cam had as dominant a season as a starting pitcher can have from start to finish,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said in a statement.

“This Cy Young is richly deserved. Cam was the most dominant pitcher in our league and continues to grow into a foundational player for this franchise,” Boone said.

Schlittler became the seventh Yankee to win the Cy Young and the first since Gerrit Cole in 2023. He, Guidry and Whitey Ford are the only homegrown pitchers among those seven. The award ended Tarik Skubal’s streak of two consecutive AL wins with the Detroit Tigers.

Toronto’s Dylan Cease finished runner-up after receiving 22 second-place votes from the 30 voters, with Cleveland’s Parker Messick third.

The writers also selected their inaugural Reliever of the Year winners. Toronto’s Louis Varland won the AL award with 16 first-place votes out of 30 after recording a 1.27 ERA, 35 saves and 78 innings.

San Diego’s Mason Miller won unanimously in the NL. Miller recorded a 1.67 ERA and 38 saves, striking out 129 batters across 70 innings.