THE Cleveland Goalies The bullpen was easily the best in all of baseball during the 2024 regular season. Emmanuel Clase led the way for the bullpen, which put together one of the most dominant seasons in recent memory.

Clase’s historic season has captured the attention of everyone in the sport and he was named a finalist for the 2024 American League Cy Young Award on Monday night.

Clase finished the regular season with a 0.61 ERA, 0.66 WHIP, 2.23 FIP, and 674 ERA+. He also led the AL in saves for the third straight season with 47.

Even if Clase doesn’t win Cy Young, it’s still a huge accomplishment for him to be named a finalist. A reliever is rarely considered for the award, and the last pitcher out of the bullpen to be named a Cy Young finalist was Francisco Rodriguez in 2008.

The last reliever to actually win an AL Cy Young was Dennis Eckersley of the Oakland Athletics in 1992.

Just like the Nominees for American League Coach of the Yearall Cy Young finalists are from the AL Central division. The other finalists are Tarik Skubal from Detroit Tigers and Seth Lugo of Kansas City Royals.

It will be interesting to see how voters compare Clase to Lugo and Skubal, each playing a different role on the mound. Still, Clase is worth considering for the award.

Yes, Clase struggled in the playoffs. However, it’s important to remember that this is a regular season distinction and the playoffs have nothing to do with the vote.

The Cy Young winner will be announced next Wednesday, November 20.