Brewers: Mid Season Team Awards 2021

After 81 games the Milwaukee Brewers find themselves in a great place. They currently have a 48-33 record and have a six game lead in the National League central. There is still a lot of work left to be done but as a fan you have to be happy with the position the team is in currently!

A big reason for the Brewers success this year has been pitching. The offense has been quiet at times but also has provided some timely hits.

In this article we are going to take a look at some Brewers mid-season awards for 81 games marks the halfway point in the regular season.

2021 Mid Season MVP + Cy Young:  Corbin Burnes

Based on the first half of the season, the MVP award had to go to a pitcher. The hardest part was choosing which pitcher. Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, Freddy Peralta, and Josh Hader have all been electric so far.

Of the pitchers mentioned, Burnes currently has the highest fWAR at 3.8.  Woodruff comes in at 2.7 and Peralta 2.4. Around the league, just Zack Wheeler and Jacob DeGrom have higher WARs then Burnes. This played a big factor in me deciding to give not only the MVP but also Cy Young award to Burnes!

On the season, Burnes has made 14 starts and tallied 82 innings pitched. He is currently sporting a 2.41 ERA and 120 strikeouts on the season.  This is good enough for a 13.2 K/9 ratio.

Limiting the walks has also been an area of improvement for Burnes this season. In fact he has excelled so well in this that he made MLB history to begin the season as he struck out 58 batters prior to issuing his first walk.

Burnes has also made history in multiple other ways. He was the first pitcher to have a streak of three games of 6+ IP and two or fewer baserunners in 120 years and has the franchise record for consecutive starts of five+ IP and one ER or less.

Even though he only takes the ball every five to six days, I do believe his track record so far has earned him the mid-season MVP award. With being the MVP, I subsequently believe that he has been the Cy Young of this team as well, which as mentioned is not an easy task given the seasons Woodruff and Peralta are having as well.