Tigers ace Justin Verlander is certainly having quite a season with the Tigers this year. He’s cemented himself as the ace of the staff for the Tigers, is a virtual lock for the American League Cy Young and probably will get some AL MVP consideration if the Tigers make the playoffs.
One thing a lot of fans tend to forget though is the Triple Crown, for pitchers that is.
The Triple Crown for batters is a title that is very prestigious among position players however the Triple Crown for pitchers is nothing to scoff at. Instead of home runs, batting average and RBI’s, the pitching Triple Crown focuses on wins, ERA and strikeouts.
John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press points out that Justin Verlander is very much in contention for that title. According to Lowe, Verlander leads the American League in victories (by two, over CC Sabathia) and in strikeouts (by 19, over Felix Hernandez). He’s second to Jered Weaver in ERA, 2.10 to 2.31.
The last pitcher to win the Triple Crown was Johan Santana in 2006 and the last Tiger to do it was Hal Newhouser in 1945. After that the closest a Tigers pitcher came to winning it again was back in 1968 when Denny McLain posted a 30 win season. That year he came in second for strikeouts to Cleveland’s Sudden Sam McDowell. McLain ended up finishing fourth in ERA at 1.96. That season Cleveland’s Luis Tiant led the AL at 1.60.
At this point the pitching Triple Crown is very much a possibility for Verlander. I dont’t think there will be any problems with him finishing ahead of Felix Hernandez in terms of strikeouts. I also believe he will end up finishing ahead of C.C. Sabathia. The only category that Verlander may fall behind on ERA.
Source: Detroit Free Press
