Jacob Misiorowski's NL Pitcher of the Month defeat proves one statistic still outweighs the rest

Player and Pitcher of the Month Awards are coveted honors in Major League Baseball and thus often produce tense battles between the league's best players when voting occurs at the end of every month. However, the NL Pitcher of the Month Award in May this year carried even more weight than normal as it pitted two of the best performances in a single month in MLB history against one another.

Jacob Misiorowski of the Milwaukee Brewers and Cristopher Sánchez of the Philadelphia Phillies each produced head-turning stat lines in May, and in any other month would have run away with the NL Pitcher of the Month Award. Miz went 5-0 in six starts with a 0.23 ERA, just six walks, and an unbelievable 57 strikeouts. Meanwhile, Sánchez didn't surrender a single run for the entire month while covering 39 innings, and allowing just three walks to 45 strikeouts.

The voters really couldn't have gone wrong with either Miz or Sánchez -- both had justifiable cases for being named the NL Pitcher of the Month in May. Misiorowski was the more dominant of the two pitchers, leading the league in strikeouts, WHIP, opponent batting average, opponent slugging percentage, and more. However, it's completely fair to say Sánchez was the more successful during the month, seeing as he didn't allow a single earned run and Miz allowed one.

In the end, that earned run seemingly made the difference. As announced on MLB Central just moments ago, Sánchez has officially defeated Misiorowski and been named the NL Pitcher of the Month after one of the best monthly award races in MLB history.

ERA reigns supreme as Cristopher Sánchez defeats Jacob Misiorowski in NL Pitcher of the Month race

It's rather difficult to argue against a pitcher who didn't allow a single run for an entire month winning the Pitcher of the Month Award, but that doesn't make it any less frustrating that Misiorowski's lone earned run seemingly made the difference between him taking home this elusive honor and him losing out to Sánchez. What makes the situation even more frustrating is the nature in which Miz allowed said earned run.

Back on May 25, in the sixth inning of Miz's seven-inning gem against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Brewers flamethrower surrendered his lone earned run of the month of May on an RBI-groundout from Iván Herrera. The inning included a bloop single, a fielder's choice, a ground-ball single through the right side, and then an RBI-groundout. It wasn't as if Miz made a mistake that an opposing hitter crushed 400 feet over the fence or walked four straight batters to allow a run. One fastball to JJ Wetherholt in the inning could have been better located, but for the most part, Miz executed as he wanted to and simply got unlucky. The result, during a month when he simply had to be perfect, is him missing out on the NL Pitcher of the Month Award.

The award race continues the developing rivalry between Miz and Sánchez that dates back to last year's All-Star Game. Sánchez was offered a spot in the Midsummer Classic, but turned it down, and that spot was later given to Miz. To the outside observer, and the Phillies' clubhouse for some reason, it appeared MLB had chosen Miz over Sánchez, which led to a great deal of controversy.

One year later, the pair are two of the best arms in the National League and will likely continue to compete for awards and accolades for years to come. The next competition could be who is named the NL's All-Star Game starter this year -- a race complicated by the fact that the Midsummer Classic will be in Sánchez's home ballpark in Philadelphia.

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