Kevin Gausman’s recognition as the Blue Jays’ ace and one of the best pitchers in the game continues.
On Saturday evening, it was announced by Major League Baseball that Guasman was named to the All MLB Second-Team, an end of year award for the best players in the league.
Gausman was just that for the Jays in 2023, as the 32-year-old posted a 3.16 Earned Run Average (ERA) and a 2.97 Fielding Independent Pitch (FIP) in 185 innings pitched. On top of that, he had a 31.1 K% and a 7.2 BB%. In total, he had 237 strikeouts which was the highest amount  in the American League.
For the third straight season, Gausman finished with Cy Young votes, as he was nominated for the award for the first time. Ultimately, he fell to Gerrit Cole, with Sonny Gray also picking up more votes than Gausman.
The Blue Jays have one of the best rotations in all of baseball, with Gausman being the best of the bunch. José Berríos had a 3.65 ERA and a 3.99 FIP in 189.2 innings in 2023, Chris Bassitt had a 3.60 ERA and a 4.28 FIP in 200 innings pitched (and also received Cy Young votes), and Yusei Kikuchi had a 3.86 ERA and a 4.12 FIP in 167.2 innings pitched. Imagine if none of those pitchers regress, and Alek Manoah returns to 2022-form?
Toronto signed Gausman on December 1, 2021 to a five-year, $110 million deal. What a deal it has turned out to be, as the team’s ace has a 3.25 ERA and a 2.68 FIP in 359.2 innings pitched with the team. On top of that, the contract looks exceptional, as Aaron Nola just signed a seven-year, $172 million deal with the Phillies. It’s presumed that Yoshinobu Yamamoto could receive a contract near $300 million, and who knows what reigning National League Cy Young winner, Blake Snell, will receive.
Either way, this is a well-deserved honour for Gausman, but let’s hope he wins his first Cy Young in 2024.
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