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With the 2024 Major League Baseball season arriving this week, fans across the globe can’t wait to see what some of the best players out there will get done. Of course, plenty of attention will be on the MVP races for both leagues, but let’s not forget about the star pitchers out there. Nope, not even for a second. With that said, Kevin Gausman is the favorite to win the 2024 AL Cy Young. Will the standout Blue Jays pitcher be able to get the job done?
Gausman is entering the new season with incredibly high expectations. Matter of fact, the exact same can be said for the Blue Jays as a whole. This team has a strong offense and a fantastic pitching staff. When you combine those two, there’s no reason why the team won’t be able to make a ton of noise in the AL East this year. Some pundits think Toronto will be able to bring home the division title this season which would be awesome. In order for that to happen, Gausman will need to be on fire.
| AL Cy Young odds |  |  |  |
| Gausman to win | +650 | +650 | +650 |
| Valdez to win | +850 | +850 | +850 |
| Burnes to win | +850 | +850 | +850 |
| Castillo to win | +1000 | +1000 | +1000 |
Last season for the Blue Jays, the hard-throwing righty was superb, finishing with a 12-9 record and a 3.16 ERA. He earned All-Star Game honors for the second time in his career and he finished third in the AL Cy Young voting. This season, the hope is that he’ll be able to get his ERA below 3.00, while helping the Blue Jays make some serious noise once the postseason gets here. It will be interesting to see how Gausman does and how strong Toronto can play too.
According to the best-rated sportsbooks, which includes the reliable Bovada review, Gausman holds +650 MLB betting odds to win the AL Cy Young this season. With the way he has been able to play in recent years, making the ASG in two of the past three campaigns, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Gausman get the job done in 2024. However, we’re going to have to go in a different direction for who we think will be named the AL Cy Young winner.
Kevin Gausman's Splitter…still Disgusting. 🤮 pic.twitter.com/prpJ0Vn1o7
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) March 25, 2024
Luis Castillo is our pick to win AL Cy Young this season
Believe it or not, Luis Castillo is our pick to win AL Cy Young this season. The superstar for the Seattle Mariners is ready for another big year, as things are going to get started for him on Thursday night at T-Mobile Park against the Boston Red Sox. The Mariners are favored to post a win over Boston and Castillo is a major reason why. He’s without question one of the best pitchers in the bigs and he’s been great since Seattle traded for him.
Last season for the Mariners, Castillo went 14-9 with a 3.34 ERA. He started 33 games for the Mariners, which showcases how durable he is for this staff. Castillo also went to the All-Star Game for the third time and finished fifth in the Cy Young race. With him still being in the prime of his career and the Mariners being on the rise, it could lead to him having his best year yet for the AL West side. He’s entering the new campaign with a ton of confidence as well – he’s also not worried about the pitch clock.
Luis Castillo vs the Brewers today
5.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 9 K’s. He’s ready. pic.twitter.com/xHubn7AO2T
— Switch (@IISwitchII) March 22, 2024
“The pitch clock does play into that and it gets a little bit more challenging when you have more pitches,” Servais said during Spring Training. “I would highly recommend our pitchers stick with our catcher as much as possible. I certainly understand it, but our guys are relatively pretty young and I cannot see ‘The Rock’ (Castillo) doing that. Rock just likes to ‘give me the ball and I’m going to pitch.'”
Per the oddsmakers, Castillo had +1000 MLB betting odds to win Cy Young. He’s not the favorite and there are others ahead of him odds wise, but we still think that ‘The Rock’ has what it takes to showcase why he’s such an unreal talent. If the Mariners can get hot early on and stay that way, it will only help his chances. With all of that said, we’re going with Castillo as our pick. It could be a season to remember for him.
Other studs are in the hunt for AL Cy Young
As high as we are on Castillo, and Gausman holding the best odds, keep in mind that other studs are in the hunt for AL Cy Young. The list of course includes Framber Valdez, Corbin Burnes, Tarik Skubal, Cole Ragans and others. From our chair, Valdez could be a dark horse to take home the honor, as he’s getting ready to get things done with Houston.
On Opening Day, Valdez will start for the Astros in a major showdown against the New York Yankees. The Yankees have a loaded lineup, which now features Juan Soto. If Valdez can make a statement in Game 1, then it could help boost his odds early on in the season. We’ll be keeping a close eye on him and others, no question about that.
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