In a season where Julio Urías emerged as the ace of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitching staff, he also locked up the National League ERA title following his start against the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday.
In a seventh year with the Dodgers, Urías capped off the best regular season of his career. Through 26 starts in 2022, Urías finished with a record of 17-7, 2.16 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 166 strikeouts in 175 innings.
That followed up an incredible 2021 season in which he carried a 20-3 record and 2.96 ERA over 185.2 innings pitched. The 26-year-old improved upon some early-season bumps and after allowing two runs over five innings against the Rockies, Urías extended his streak of starts with two or fewer runs allowed to 14.
“It’s incredible. You always have goals at the beginning of the season, and to reach those is something that you want to do as a competitor” Urías said of capturing the ERA crown.
“Last year, I won 20 games. So this year to win that ERA title is something really special. I think that’s the preparation I put into this year.”
The last Dodgers pitcher to win the NL ERA title was Hyun-Jin Ryu in 2019 when he posted a 2.32 mark and finished second in Cy Young Award voting.
The Miami Marlins announced that Sandy Alcántara would not make a final turn in the rotation, ending his year with a 2.28 ERA in 228.2 innings, which includes six complete games. Alcántara has long been viewed as the NL Cy Young Award favorite.
Predictably, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has endorsed Urías as one of the top candidates for the Cy Young.
Where Julio Urías stands in NL Cy Young race
Urías led baseball in wins and finished seventh in the 2021 Cy Young award race, and with a need for an ace on the Dodgers staff after Walker Buehler was lost for the year, he pitched his way into the conversation with the game’s best.
Alcántara has the most complete season of any NL starter given his innings and larger sample size, but another fellow lefty from the San Francisco Giants, Carlos Rodon, posted a 2.88 ERA, 2.25 FIP, and punched out 11.98% of batters per nine innings.
Urías however, trails only Kyle Wright of the Atlanta Braves in wins, but has presented the complete package of ERA and wins, while maintaining a 0.96 WHIP.
Voters could acknowledge Alcántara’s throwback performance of going deep into games as the thing that might cost Urías a shot at the 2022 NL Cy Young Award.
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