Brewers Ace Corbin Burnes Completes The Prophecy, Wins 2021 NL Cy Young

The prophecy has been fulfilled. Brewers ace Corbin Burnes is your 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner!

Back on this site in 2019, I put in a bold prediction that Corbin Burnes would win the Cy Young. He seemed to have the stuff to do it, and I believed he could. Burnes proceeded to put forth one of the worst seasons by a starting pitcher we have ever seen. Many jumped off the bandwagon quickly. Many “fans” called for Burnes to be traded or simply released.

However, I stood by Burnes and always believed he could fulfill that bold prediction one day.

In 2020, Burnes looked much more like the pitcher he was expected to be, and he ended up finishing 6th in the NL Cy Young race.

Still, despite his obvious improvements, Burnes was somewhat of a darkhorse in the Cy Young race entering 2021, entering the season with 45-1 odds of winning. For anyone able to take that bet, they’re cashing out big time now. However, my expectations were still that he would take the crown.

He did. After winning the MLB ERA Title, after setting dozens of MLB and Brewers franchise records, Corbin Burnes is your 2021 NL Cy Young award winner!

Corbin Burnes is the third Cy Young winner in Brewers franchise history, and the first since 1982.

After three seasons of driving the Corbin Burnes for Cy Young Hype Train, the final destination has arrived! Corbin Burnes is your reigning NL Cy Young winner.

He had a 2.43 ERA, best in baseball, with a 12.6 K/9, also best in baseball, and had a 7.5 fWAR, best among all NL pitchers. He had just a 1.8 BB/9, a 1.63 FIP, the second best mark in baseball history, and allowed just seven home runs, half of what the next closest qualified pitcher allowed.

The BBWAA voting tallies were close, with Burnes winning by a very tight margin. Burnes received 12 first place votes, the same amount as Zack Wheeler. However Burnes also received 14 second place votes while Wheeler only got 9.

The final points tally gave Burnes 151 points and Wheeler 141, giving Burnes his first of probably many Cy Youngs in his career.

Brandon Woodruff also earned a 5th place finish, earning a pair of 4th place votes and 17 fifth place votes.

The margin of victory doesn’t really matter in the long run, what matters is that Burnes just put up one of the best statistical seasons in recent memory and he is able to walk away with a Cy Young award.

The voters got it right, Corbin Burnes is your NL Cy Young. Let’s go!