R.A. Dickey Cy Young Watch

R.A. Dickey emerged as the clear favorite for the Cy Young Award following Thursday afternoon’s game. But then came Thursday night and Gio Gonzalez.

Dickey’s record stands at 18-4 with a 2.64 ERA. The ERA is second to Johnny Cueto’s 2.58. But Cueto is 17-7. Dickey is also tied for second in strikeouts with 195. Cueto is way behind with 149. All of this gives Dickey the slight edge over Cueto.

However Gonzalez threw seven shutout innings in the evening to tie Dickey for the lead in wins at 18-7. He lowered his ERA to 2.98. His 185 strikeouts leaves him fourth in the league.

Dickey has the edge over Gonzalez right now because the National has more loses and a higher ERA. But Gonzalez or Cueto can easily eclipse Dickey with strong finishes and a weak one by Dickey.

Dickey also leads the league in complete games (5) and shutouts (3), which could end up to be the tie-breaker if the three pitchers finish with similar records.