Johan Santana wins Cy Young!

From the Seats, November 12, 2004

MINNEAPOLIS - It was unanimous, 28 of 28 first place votes for Johan Santana makes him the 2004 AL Cy Young!

Johan Santana was 20-6 with an AL leading 2.61 ERA, 265 strike outs and held opposing hitters to a .192 batting average and posted a 0.92 WHIP. The only column he trailed in was wins, and by one to runner up Curt Schilling.

Is what turned heads was what Santana did in the second half. He put up a 18-2 record with a 1.36 in his final 22 starts. The two losses, were games that Brad Radke is all to familiar about, he had no run support, zippo, zero! Santana didn't allow more than three runs in a game over that stretch. Santana didn't lose a game after July 11, going 13-0 with a 1.21 ERA following the All Star break.

Don't forget that Johan Santana was not an All Star this year. Maybe that was because he was 7-6 with a 3.78 ERA at the break. Far better than the 2-4 5.50 ERA after his first 12 starts, but was it really All Star worthy? It might have been, as it was just about that time John had found his grove and was settling in to it. It was a grove he wouldn't come out of for the rest of the season.

The Royals, Rangers, White Sox, Red Sox, Yankees, Angles, Orioles all were blown away by Santana on his run to the Cy Young.

As a fan, watching Johan Santana in the second half of the season was a very, very memorable experience. Going to games to see one guy pitch and watch him dominate his opponents was simply amazing! And he wasn't pitching against scum, he had some pretty big match ups that he won with ease!

Maybe the best part of all is that Santana has not changed through his Cy Young year. Many of Johan's teammates and coaches have said he is the same guy that he was at the beginning of the season.

Congratulations Johan Santana! Cant wait until next year!